Forbidden Magic
by usnoozulose
Summary: 16 year old Lucy lives in a world where being born a mage will get you sent straight to a concentration camp. When her biggest secret is revealed, she has to run away for her safety. Will she be able to start a new life in a town named Magnolia? Should she risk getting close to her newfound friends? Is she really alone? Eventual NaLu. Occasional swearing.
1. Chapter 1

**PROLOGUE**

Layla's POV

I watched as my 6 year old daughter, Lucy, summoned her first spirit; the joy was evident in her eyes as they reflected the golden light in front of her. The light faded away to reveal a mermaid, whom Lucy immediately started hugging, much to the mock disapproval of the spirit. The scene made my heart swell with bittersweet happiness.

It was truly despicable that we lived in a world that shunned magical abilities.

I had always thought that magic was beautiful, not listening to what people around me said about it. My spirits were not dangerous or an abomination; they were some of my dearest friends.

As soon as I had realised that Lucy had magic inside her like I do, the conflicting emotions were almost overwhelming. On one hand, I could have chosen to spare her of the dangerous and lonely life that came with being a mage.

But I knew that her spirits would never allow her to be lonely. Even at a young age she had a way of connecting with people, making them adore her.

The spirits would protect her. Even without my magical training her magic would have shown sooner or later; it was my job to make sure she knew what it was and had it under control.

I heard the creaking of the stairs of our mansion, which alerted me of my approaching husband, Jude.

"Close, gate of Aquarius" I whispered, sending the celestial spirit Lucy had summoned away. Disappointment sparked in my daughter's eyes, but I just smiled at her. She would take care of my spirits when I wasn't able to.

"Layla, are you in there?" I heard Jude calling from outside.

"Yes dear, I'm just giving Lucy a bath" I replied.

"The doctor said you should stay in bed, you shouldn't be straining yourself" he said, worry lacing his voice.

Jude really did care about me, even though our marriage had been arranged. I cared about him as well, but I knew deep down that if he knew I had magic, he would send me straight to one of those awful magic concentration camps.

He was kind hearted but he was also brainwashed into thinking that magic was something to be repelled by.

I just hoped that Lucy would find someone she could really be herself with; something that I had found only with her.

I sighed and stood up with some effort, not missing the innocent worry in my child's expression.

"Keep practising, Lucy. You have to hide it for your safety but never be ashamed of your abilities. Night, Honey" I whispered to her, bending over to place a kiss on the top of her head.

"Night, mama" she replied with a smile.

She was a strong one, my daughter.

 **A/N: hey, hope you liked my short prologue!**

 **I have no idea if this concept has been done before but I just got the idea for it one day and thought up too many scenarios not to write it all down.**

 **The rest of the chapters will be in Lucy's point of view. I've got a few of them done already (they're longer than this - don't worry!), and I'm new to the fanfiction community so would really appreciate reviews and constructive criticism**

 **-usnoozulose**


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy's POV

Shit. Shitshitshit.

Delirious with exhaustion, I laughed to myself as I noted that I really should work on my cardio.

I was definitely not in a laughing situation. I had dreaded this moment in my life, yet I also found myself feeling an odd sense of relief; it was what I had been waiting for for years. Now I could start a new life, away from that house which practically emitted loneliness.

That is, if the royal guard didn't catch up with me.

Why was I running away from the royal freaking guard, you ask? Because my dad couldn't handle the fact that I saved our house from complete destruction. One of his used cigarettes must have been put out incorrectly and half the dining room was engulfed in flames by the time I reached the scene. I managed to put out the flames pretty easily, preventing further damage, so technically I'm the hero, right?

Okay, I left out the fact that my dad walked in on me being a hero… meaning that he had seen my celestial spirit, which he had not been ready for.

The look on his face when he saw an inhuman hybrid of a woman and a fish drenching everything in sight was almost worth the dire situation I was now in.

Almost.

I had panicked and closed her spirit gate; the flash of gold only serving as further confirmation for my father that he had raised an 'abomination'.

Well, I use the term 'raised' lightly.

I carried on running, knowing my only escape was the train station. As I approached it, I could see there was only one train on the tracks, just about to leave. I registered that this was my one and only chance, hearing the faint sound of multiple royal guard horses behind me. Dang, twitter had nothing on how fast news spread in the small town.

Ignoring the screen showing information as to where the train was going, I jumped over the ticket barrier and sprinted towards the closing train doors.

The sound of me crashing into the already shut doors must have echoed throughout the entire station. I was too stunned to register everyone's turning heads.

This was supposed to be it. I was supposed to escape. My breathing hitched as the train started to move away slowly. I felt my eyes starting to water for the first time since mama died. The reality of the situation hit me like a tonne of bricks. The royal guard would catch me. I would be locked away. My spirit keys… my dear spirits would be taken. I would never see them again…

"OI YOU! ARE YOU ALRIGHT? QUICK, GET UP, GRAB MY HAND!" a loud, obnoxious voice interrupted my admittedly dark thoughts.

I looked up to see an outstretched hand from one of the windows of the still slowly moving train. I had no time to think rationally about whether or not this was a good idea. I grabbed the hand as it came past me, and the stranger started pulling me into the train

Remember how I said I hadn't thought rationally about this?

"shit! I'm stuck!" I cried as I felt the edges of the window pressing into my hips.

I let go of the hand and attempted to push myself further in, only succeeding in bruising myself. I felt my cheeks blushing wildly as I thought of all the people outside who would just see a pair of legs sticking out of the train… oh god, I am such an idiot…

My frantic struggles were interrupted by a loud cackling laughter coming from the person who had got me into this mess.

"PAHAHAH you should see your face! Oh I _need_ to capture this on camera." laughed a boy who looked about my age, rifling through his bag. I could only see his side profile, and the first things I registered were a white muffler around his neck and pink hair styled in an 'I woke up like this' way. Wait… pink hair?

"Imagine the hits I'd get on youtube with the title, 'weirdo gets stuck in train window'!" he sang with glee.

Despite my panicked and flustered state, and the blatantly dangerous situation I was in, I found myself fuming over one little word he had said.

"I'm not a weirdo, pinky!" I retorted. Not my best insult, but the blood that should have gone to my brain was being hoarded in my cheeks.

He looked at me, his dark slanted eyes locking with mine with amusement. He stopped his search for his camera, much to my relief, and faced me.

"You were near tears just for missing the train. There was another one in an hour, weirdo!" he started laughing again, acting completely casual as if half of me wasn't sticking out of a freaking _moving_ train.

I felt the wind hard against my legs as the train started picking up speed. Now was no time to get angry at the boy for something he didn't understand. After all, he had helped me in the first place and whether he realised it or not, he just damn near saved my life.

"Whatever, just help pull me in already!" I shouted, glaring at him.

He must have sensed my urgency because he grabbed hold of my hands again and started pulling, hard. I focused on the odd warmth of his hands to distract me from the pain in my already bruised hips.

Suddenly, I fell into the carriage with a crash as my legs had finally made it through the window. Pinkie had fallen back due to the momentum, but he got up unscathed a moment later, rubbing the back of his head.

"My hair's salmon, by the way. Not pink." He said, watching me lie in the floor of the train compartment, still exhausted from my adrenaline-fueled run to the station.

I took the time to catch my breath, nearly crying in relief at the fact that I had escaped. Sure, it was not the best escape, and I would write little detail about it in the letters to my late mother, but it was successful nonetheless. And I had one person to thank for it.

"Thank you." I whispered to the boy who was now sitting in one of the seats.

I got up from my position on the floor and walked towards him. His facial expression was a huge smile, with his eyes closed.

"No prob- HEY! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" he shouted as I flicked him on the forehead.

"THAT'S FOR LOOKING FOR YOUR STUPID CAMERA WHEN HALF OF MY BODY WAS SUCK OUTSIDE OF A MOVING TRAIN. WHAT IF WE HAD GONE THOUGH A TUNNEL, HUH? WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED TO MY LEGS? DID YOU EVEN STOP TO THI- HEY! STOP LAUGHING!" I was fuming, and he had the nerve to double over laughing in my face?

I gave him my deadliest look. "listen here, pinky-"

"The name's Natsu" he said with another smile that took over half his face. I felt my anger fading away. Something about his smile was so genuine and carefree, it almost made me forget about how terrifying my day had been. Sure, I covered it up with humour, but really I felt like a terrified 7 year old left to fend for myself.

I felt myself smiling back at him. It would be okay to tell him my first name; it was common enough so as to not get traced back to who I really was.

"I'm Lucy", I replied.

 **A/N: hope you liked the first chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it, and no I don't plan on ignoring Natsu's motion sickness. I do plan on downplaying it a bit though, and I'm not ashamed to say the reason for that is simply plot convenience**  
 **I get the feeling that the start of this story is going to be kind of slow because I'm not too sure about pacing at the moment, but I'll try to speed it up to the good parts. reviews are really appreciated!**  
 **the story is going to have a few references to the British education system so I get the feeling I may need to clarify some things about that in future chapters...**

 **Alerssa - yeah this is my first fanfiction, and thank you so much!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: If you didn't grow up in Britain then I should probably give you a heads up:**  
 **GCSEs are exams taken by students when they're 16**  
 **After that, most people go to a sixth form college to study for exams called A-Levels which they take when they're 18**  
 **Also in case you were wondering, my school-related setting more for getting all the characters together rather than for actual story line, so I wouldn't really call this a school fic.**  
 **Anyway, enough explaining. Enjoy!**

His reaction to my name was not what I expected. Hell, it wasn't the sort of reaction you'd expect for even the most horrible names like Fanny or Margret.

He suddenly turned green in the face, his cheeks bulging… was he going to be sick? Was my name really so awful that it would provoke such a reaction?

He lay on his side, his arms wrapped around his stomach. My rational thoughts finally kicked in.

"Motion sickness?" I asked.

He looked up at me, whining as a reply. I took that as a yes.

Oh well, at least he wouldn't have the strength to annoy me with his loud voice. Or ask questions, I hoped.

Ah, I wonder if he would be lying down so carelessly if he thought I was going to eat his soul or whatever crap they spouted about mages in order to make everyone fear them.

Something moving on the far side of the compartment caught my eye. My eyes widened. A bag was moving. Why was an inanimate object moving?

"Hey, you don't mind cats, do you?" Pinky asked weakly. I focused my attention back on him to find that he was also looking at the magical moving bag.

No, not magic. Was he suggesting that…

"You put a cat in a bag? Cats need to breathe, you know." I said, rushing to free the poor feline. Honestly, was this guy an animal abuser?

I heard him snort. "I had to act like a total ninja to smuggle him in without anyone noticing."

I briefly pictured Natsu running around in a black ninja outfit, whilst failing miserably to be a ninja due to his loud voice. I smirked to myself before pulling the zip on the bag.

A bright blue cat jumped out, a hesitant look in its eyes when it glanced at me. I found myself gawking at its strange colour. That wasn't natural, was it? Then again it seemed this Natsu guy had a thing for hair dye.

"Hey Happy, this is Luigi. She's our new friend!" Pinky said.

"My name's not Luigi!" I shouted, throwing the empty bag at his stupid head, as soon as I registered that he had called me the wrong name. Wait… did he just call me his friend?

I… I was slightly startled by that. Growing up scared of anyone knowing about my magic, I had a tendency of trying not to get too close to people. It was bloody lonely sometimes.

I've spent, like, 5 minutes in this compartment with this guy, and I'm already his friend? When did that happen?

I found myself agreeing with him, though. Maybe it was when he introduced himself, or the moment he decided to help me get on the train. I had made a friend.

I was so far into my thoughts that I almost missed the slight shake of his head that he gave to his cat. Ah, so now he was a cat whisperer, apparently. Able to communicate with cats. Fantastic.

Happy turned his head away from Natsu and looked back at me.

Brushing off the odd communication between the two, I reached over to stroke the blue furball.

"He's cute, I'll give him that" I said, tickling Happy under his chin.

"TICKET INSPECTOR! GET YOUR TICKETS READY!" a booming voice travelled down the train.

I cursed loudly, looking for a place in the compartment where I could hide.

Natsu, still looking like he was half dead and unable to move, managed to gather the strength to throw Happy's bag at my face with force.

"Quick! Put him back in the bag!"

"I swear to god I am going to Lucy kick you so hard if you throw anything at my face ever again" I mumbled, along with a few other threats, as I placed Happy back into the bag and zipped it up.

My threats, however, evidently didn't sound brutal enough to wipe that stupid smirk off pinky's face.

When I heard the ticket inspector's steps coming closer to the compartment, I restarted my blatantly futile search for a hiding spot.

"You haven't got a ticket? That's kinda dumb." Natsu stated, not at all empathetic of my situation.

I was about to severely reduce the number of brain cells he had in that pink head of his when the compartment door slammed open.

"Tickets, please!" the inspector called to Natsu and I.

I stared at him, silent, with an embarrassed expression.

Okay, Lucy. No time to panic. Maybe you could bribe him? No, I barely grabbed enough money to feed myself for a week before I left the house. Sex appeal? No, not with Pinky here who would probably film it and put it on youtube with the title, 'weirdo tries to be sexy'. THINK, Lucy.

"Let me guess, Natsu, no ticket again? Why is it always my shift when you decide to go joyriding on a train for free? I'm kicking your ass off at the next stop, brat. And your ticket, Miss?" the inspector looked from Natsu to me. Why did I hear more amusement than anger in his voice?

"She ain't got a ticket either Macao, you need to kick her off as well." Natsu replied for me.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

A while later, I was stepping off the train into magnolia station, supporting Natsu's weight since the idiot had never heard of travel sickness tablets. It turns out that being pals with the train workers got you out of paying the fine for riding the train without a ticket. The whole 'kicking off the train' was only a figure of speech, as well. My day was actually starting to look up. Natsu hadn't thrown up which made me believe in my luck even more.

I found a bench outside the station. I decided I could let my guard down for now – there was no way the royal guard could have followed me on the train and they hopefully had no idea where I was. Thank god my father hadn't taken any photos of me in years, or my face would currently be everywhere with 'wanted' written underneath, like in a crappy western movie.

Dropping Natsu and Happy's open bag on the bench unceremoniously, I sighed and sat down next to them.

"So where were you planning on getting off in the first place?" Natsu asked after taking some time to recover.

Oh no, here came the questions. I hadn't thought of a cover story yet.

"I thought you would want to be on time for something because you were so upset at missing the train, but now you're totally relaxed. What gives?" he pushed.

I needed to get the topic of conversation off myself.

He started talking again, "you didn't even buy a ticket-"

"Neither did you, and I recall you saying I was dumb. What does that make you, Natsu?" I interrupted, smirking at him.

"Yeah but I meant to get off at magnolia. I knew I would end up here with or without a ticket."

Silence. My smirk faded. I needed him to stop.

"Were you… running from something?" he asked after a long pause, his confused eyes staring at me.

Oh, hell no.

I had a sudden urge to do exactly what he was accusing me of… run away.

But I had done enough of that today. I decided I would give him a taste of his own medicine.

"Why don't you tell me why you think you can communicate with your cat?" I asked. Okay, it was a long shot. There was a chance I had simply imagined that small shake of his head aimed at Happy. But if I hadn't imagined it, he would have to admit to me right now that he was crazy. Ha. Suffer, Pinky.

There was a long silence between us again.

"Alright, Lucy, I get it. We all have secrets, I guess." He said, shrugging.

I sighed in relief, happy that he had agreed to drop it. He was my friend, but for all I knew he hated mages, possibly more than my father did. It pained me to think about it, but he may resort to violence if he knew what I really was… and his muscled arms were no joke.

I felt bad for having to keep him out, though. Despite his teasing, I knew he didn't mean any harm. He asked those questions with genuine concern in his voice. Concern for me.

I checked my watch to see it was 4:30pm; I had enough time to eat and get straight back onto a train away from here.

"Listen, I still owe you for pulling me into the train and getting me out of paying that fine. Do you know any good restaurants around here? It'll be my treat." I offered, smiling.

His goofy smile instantly cut through the tense atmosphere that had been building up.

"Sure Luce, I don't know my way around but we can find one!"

He grabbed onto my wrist, pulling me off the bench and further away from the station, Happy running after us.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"Are you sure you don't know your way around? How on earth did you find this place so fast?" I asked Natsu as we entered a homely looking restaurant.

"I smelt something good" He shrugged in reply, searching for a free table we could sit at.

I didn't even bother to ask how he had smelt this place from the train station; in fact all I could do was agree with him.

The atmosphere alone in this place was lively and welcoming, which was something I really needed after today. We finally found a free table and grabbed the menus, both evidently too hungry to make small talk on how nice this place was.

"Welcome to Fairy Tale, Best and most affordable restaurant in all of Fiore! I'm Mirajane and I'll be your server for today. May I take your orders?"

I looked up to see a stunning woman with long white hair smiling at us. I smiled back at her and opened my mouth to order, only to be interrupted by my dear companion.

"I'll take two hamburgers, three portions of large chips, urmm… do you have chilli sauce here? A cup of that would be great. Oh and also the spicy chicken wings…"

He didn't stop there. I felt my face blanching as he ordered several portions of everything on the menu. Was this guy for real? I shot an apologetic look at Mirajane, who looked surprisingly composed for someone who was receiving the most ridiculous order ever.

"… several of those as well., and I think that's it. What about you, Luce?"

I stared at him for a while, waiting for the big reveal that he was, in fact, messing with me, and not trying to completely bankrupt me.

Needless to say, it never came.

"What part of 'my treat' made you think you could completely bankrupt me, Pinky? Order like a normal human being and I'll consider not throwing you out of the window." I growled, pushing down laughter as I imagined how entertaining throwing him through a window would be.

"but Lucyyyy I'm hungry, and Happy's hungry as well! Why do you want to starve us?"

I flicked him on the forehead again because he damn right deserved it.

"Lucy's mean." He whined, rubbing his forehead.

I smirked, revelling in my victory over him. Looking back at Mirajane, who I only now realised had been watching the entire exchange of… pleasantries between Natsu and I, I decided to order.

"He'll have a large portion of burger and fries. With chilli sauce since he seems to want to set his mouth on fire. I'll have the lasagne, please."

I smiled up at her, relieved to see she wasn't looking at us as if we were toddlers having a temper tantrum.

"And some fish for my cat who's probably exploring outside right now." Natsu added, looking for a nod of approval from me.

A tinkling laughter came from our waitress. "Oh wow, you guys are really going to fit in here. That is, if you're staying in Magnolia?" she asked happily.

Good question. Should I go as far away as possible from my old town or should I stay here?

Natsu replied almost instantly, "yeah, I'm starting the sixth form college here in September." He smiled, excitement lacing his voice.

"Oh, my sister Lissana is starting this year as well! I'll make sure to introduce you guys if she pops in anytime soon. What about you?" she asked, looking at me.

I decided to just be honest, I couldn't say I'm staying and then decide it was better to hightail it out of here.

"I don't think I'll be staying for long. I'll make sure to recommend this place to people in other towns though!" Huh, I hadn't even received the food yet and I was already singing this place's praises.

"Ah, what a shame. Anyway it was nice meeting you two, but I believe it's time I started doing my job." She said with another dazzling smile, walking away.

"Hey, how old are you?" Natsu asked.

"16." I replied, wondering where this was going.

"Great! You should totally come to Magnolia college as well, it's a really good school and there are dormitories to stay in if you don't live nearby." His voice was loud and even more excited than before.

I noticed how he avoided mentioning his suspicion that I didn't even have a home right now, and I couldn't help but appreciate it. An education and a place to stay sounded amazing right now.

"I don't know, Natsu. As great as that sounds, I don't really have any documents proving how well I did in my GCSEs. Wouldn't it be too late to sign up now, anyway?" I inquired, not allowing myself to get my hopes up.

"Nonsense, I'm only just registering today! You should come with and register as well. If you just tell them your GCSE grades I'm sure they'll let you in…"

"Yeah, right, they'll totally believe me. The blonde who got straight As in every subject who just so happens to have misplaced the proof. They'll accept me on the spot." I deadpanned.

"Excuse me, but I couldn't help hearing you guys talking about registering for Magnolia college today?" asked a timid voice from beside our table.

I looked over to see a small yet mature looking girl with wavy blue hair.

"Yeah, he is." I replied with a kind smile, pointing over at Natsu.

"Are you registering today as well?" he asked the girl.

She nodded shyly and I had to stop myself gushing at how adorable this petite girl was.

"You can come with us, we're going to eat first though" I said, deciding that making one more friend today couldn't hurt.

"Us?" Natsu asked, grinning.

"Yes, fine, us. It's not like I can register anyway. What's your name by the way?" I asked the girl.

"Levy" she replied with a smile, her nervousness gone.

"This is Natsu and I'm Lucy, nice to meet you."

"Hey Levy, do you know how to forge documents?" Natsu blurted out.

I looked at him in disbelief. "You just met the girl and you're asking if she knows how to commit an illegal act?"

"What? She looks smart, what with all those books she's carrying." He replied in all seriousness.

Levy blushed slightly at Natsu's observation; whether it was the criminal accusation or the compliment, however, I don't know.

I rolled my eyes and gave Levy a look that said 'ignore him'.

"Why do you need to forge documents? Out of curiosity, of course." She inquired.

I raised a single eyebrow but decided to answer honestly. "I err… lost my GCSE certificates. Without them, I can't qualify to start A-Levels at the college. I honestly did get good results though."

I scratched the back of my head and attempted to act embarrassed that I had managed to 'lose' the important documents.

Something about the devious glint in her eye told me that there was way more to this girl than her small frame and initial timidness.

"You guys aren't cops, are you?" she joked quietly, a scheming smile spreading on her face.

My eyes widened. Was she suggesting…

"So you know how? That's perfect! How long do you think it will take?" Natsu shouted, grabbing Levy's shoulders.

I found myself zoning out completely. Probably not the best time to do so since Natsu was invading Levy's personal space and may need another flick on the forehead.

I was overwhelmed, I guess. These people I had just met were discussing how to break the law for me. I was currently on a pictureless list of wanted mages and people were hunting me down as we spoke. I was being offered a chance to start again, but what would I do for money? How could I possibly live here? I couldn't burden these people with myself. Especially since they would never accept me if they knew the truth about me.

My unfocused eyes landed on the door. I should just walk out of here right now before I get my hopes up even more.

As my eyes focused, something on the door caught my eye.

 **A/N: cliffhanger, suckers.**  
 **I've noticed that in a lot of fics people tend to add things like -chan and honorifics (is that what they're called?) onto names. I won't be doing that because I would probably get it wrong anyway; my ability to pick up other languages kinda sucks.**  
 **thanks to all my reviewers, followers and favouriters so far, it makes me really happy to see people liking my writing!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	4. Chapter 4

A 'help wanted' sign.

A poke to my face brought me out of my daze.

"-ucy, Lucy, hello? Earth to weirdo" the jarring voice interrupted my thoughts which were admittedly all over the place right now.

I looked at Natsu, debating whether I should bite his finger off.

"Now that you're with us again, I'd like to inform you that I'm willing to help with your predicament" Levy told me.

I gawked at her genuine kindness which I'm sure I did nothing to deserve.

Then, it all clicked into place. I could… I could actually stay here. I could continue my education. I could work here, in this beautiful restaurant with the kind Mirajane girl. I would be able to pay to live in the college dormitories. I would have friends right here with me…

I suddenly stood up and leant over the table, wrapping my arms around Natsu and Levy's necks.

No, not to strangle them.

I'd never put so many feelings into a hug before. These people needed to know my gratitude, even if I couldn't put it into words right now. They had literally met me today and one had saved my life whilst the other was now going to help me get into college. I'd only known this level of friendship from my spirits, and I barely ever got the chance to talk to them.

They stayed silent throughout the hug and I pulled away after a few seconds, smiling at them.

"Luce, you're crying." Natsu stated, confusion in both his and Levy's eyes.

I put my hands up to my face to confirm his observation.

"I'm alright, I just-"

"Hey guys! Sorry it took so long; we're really short-handed at the moment. I bought your order too, Levy, when I saw you sit with this old married couple here" she laughed, gesturing towards me and Natsu.

Ignoring my urge to deny that sort of relationship between Natsu and I, I decided to get straight to the matter at hand.

"Mirajane, how would I go about getting a job here? Do I need prior experience? When can I start?" I asked all in a rush, tired of forcing myself not to get ahead of myself.

She paused and blinked at me, probably because there was still some evidence of tears on my face. I knew it wasn't because she had a problem with processing the questions I was flinging at her; she had managed Natsu's first order pretty well…

Her face then lit up with yet another smile (do her cheeks not hurt?).

"Ahh finally! Someone to help me serve tables! I'll get you an application form, Lucy, was it? I reckon you could start as soon as next week, it'll depend on what the owner, Yajima, says. I don't doubt you'll get the job, though." She said, running off to get an application for me.

"That's great! Good thinking, now I can use your employee discount to eat all I want!" Natsu shouted with his mouth full, spraying food everywhere. Looks like I would have to slap some manners into this idiot.

Wait, that greedy git was already somehow halfway through his food!

Suddenly ravenous, I instantly started tucking into my food as well. The deliciousness of it was definitely not lost on me.

"So anyway, I know how to forge the documents" Levy started talking between bites. "I can use my certificates as a template and hopefully just replace the necessary information. They have a few authenticity marks that I'll have to figure out how to replicate but it shouldn't be too difficult… for me."

"What makes it so easy for you to replicate things on important documents, then?" Natsu asked her with curiosity.

The blunette stopped making eye contact with us briefly to say, "heh, I have my ways."

I exchanged a look with Natsu but we decided to leave it at that. Having an apparent criminal mastermind as a friend was definitely useful… and not something to question.

"So what can I do to help?" I asked, refusing to leave all the work to her

"Well you can start by writing your basic details on this napkin." She replied.

I paused whilst writing my name. Heartfilia was way too recognisable. Time to re-name myself, then.

From now on, I would be known as Lucy Ashley.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

After filling in the details for both levy and my job application form, I paid for the meal, leaving Mirajane a generous tip. She said I could start work in two days, so I could afford to splurge slightly, whilst keeping in mind I would have to stay at a hotel until I could move into the college dormitories.

As the three of us made our way outside, Happy approached us, looking angry.

Wait a minute. Cats can't look angry.

I attempted to shake the insanity out of my head as Natsu bent down to talk to Happy, apologising and bringing out the fish we had saved for him.

"Is he having a full on one-sided conversation with…"

"His cat, yeah. Make sure to mention it if you want him to shut up about something." I replied, winking at Levy.

"You guys really are an old married couple, you know that?" she giggled.

"We do not act like an old married couple! Of all the things to quote Mira on, you had to pick that?" I cried, face palming.

"Yeah, me and Luce only met this morning. Not near long enough to get married, right?" Natsu interjected, approaching us with a content-looking cat draped on his shoulder. That fish really must have done the trick.

Not that the cat was capable of being angry in the first place, pssht.

"You're joking, _this_ morning? Wow, you guys act like you've known each other for years… how did you even meet?" Levy asked.

Natsu instantly started crying with laughter at the memory while I glared at him, realising that if we stayed friends that this scenario would repeat itself several times.

"Please, like I'd stay friends with this dingbat for more than 24 hours." I said, pointedly ignoring her question.

"But Lucyyyy it was so funny, half of you was sort of there and the other half wasn't and your face was so red and-"

I lunged towards him, aiming to cover his mouth but he just grabbed my wrists, trapping them in his grip.

"Yes Natsu, do carry on." Levy said, looking at us with evil amusement.

I started struggling to get Natsu to stop but it was extremely half-hearted. I found myself smiling through my embarrassment as he told the story, forgetting that he was grabbing my wrists as he started doing wild hand gestures.

"Why did you pull her in in the first place though?" Levy asked after Natsu had finished talking and we had all finished laughing about it.

"Well…" Natsu looked at me as if to ask for permission.

I really didn't have the energy to get into this again. I shook my head slightly.

"I err… don't know" Natsu said dumbly, looking away from me and Levy.

Levy gave me a questioning gaze.

The happy, carefree atmosphere from before was gone and replaced by uncertainty.

I realised that this would happen regularly if I didn't give them an answer.

"Look Lucy…" Levy started.

 _Please, don't push me Levy._

"You're among friends, okay? Please help us to understand why you're here" she continued, evidently not sensing my internal plea. Maybe telling them a half-truth would suffice for now? I guess I kind of owed it to them, after they had taken the time to help me out so much.

Calming myself by taking a deep breath, I managed to say, "I… was in a bad situation. And I ran away. Th-" I stuttered, "That train was my last chance of getting out of there. I don't know what would have happened if I had missed it."

I said the last part whilst making eye contact with Natsu.

 _Thank you for saving me_

I looked down, suddenly afraid I would see nothing but pity in their expressions. A burden had been lifted off my shoulders but it had left an odd awkwardness in its absence.

A small hand grabbed mine and I looked at the petite girl whom it belonged to.

"Thank you for telling us. Do you want to explore Magnolia now? Might as well get to know our way around." Levy said, not a hint of pity in her voice.

"Damn it, is that the time? Looks like we've missed registration times for today. Can you do the certificates by tomorrow, Levy? We can all register then." Natsu said, putting a hand on my shoulder when Levy nodded in reply.

They were both smiling at me.

"Yeah, you guys can rely on me, I happen to have an excellent sense of direction." Unable to keep the smile off my face, I started leading them down into the heart of Magnolia.

They didn't try to push me any more than that. It was like… they knew exactly what I needed right now; a distraction. They handled the situation with so much grace, you'd think they actually understood everything I was feeling…

It was nice not to feel alone anymore. Who knew the day I had been dreading all my life would turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to me?

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"You collect antique keys?" Levy asked.

"Yeah, this one looks like it's the key to a bomb shelter from the First World War! Oh wow, I can't believe I found it here in a dusty charity shop!" I always enjoyed making up random stories for the keys I collected. In actual truth, I had managed to find the silver key of the Canis Minor, Nicola, and my enthusiasm was definitely not faked. Things like celestial keys were rare, and they tended to end up in places where they'd been forgotten. I had been extremely lucky to find a few after my mother died and gave me her keys.

When we were all done shopping, we said goodbye and headed off in different directions, agreeing to meet at Fairy Tail early tomorrow.

That night in the hotel I was staying in, after making a contract with my new spirit who I named Plue, I summoned all my other spirits to tell them the situation.

Every single one of them commented on how happy I looked before disappearing through their gate.

 **A/N: well, you can really tell this is fiction by how easily she got that job.  
just so you know, there are going to be certain parallels with the Manga/Anime in this story, but the story line as a whole will be completely different.  
Also, never underestimate the uplifting power of reviews. **

**fanficlove2014 - *taps nose***

 **-usnoozulose**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I am Hiro Mashima and I own Fairy Tail**  
 **in an alternate dimension, maybe**  
 **it's probably bad that I haven't done a disclaimer yet. I own only the storyline, folks!**

* * *

Applying for Magnolia college, trying to find my new dorm room, starting my new job at Fairy Tail restaurant…

Nothing had ever felt so natural and right. Call it fate or whatever, but I had no problems with accepting and living my new life.

"Hey Luce, Let's compare timetables to see if we have the same classes!" Natsu shouted down the hall to me as I fiddled with the books in my locker.  
He ran up to me and we both held out the pieces of paper, looking for similarities.  
"No chance, Natsu. We don't even study the same subjects" I sighed.  
At least I wouldn't be completely alone; Levy and I had already confirmed we'd be in the same English class.

"We've got the same Homeroom though" He noticed, pointing at the room number.  
"Ugh does that mean I have to see your face every morning?" I joked, grabbing his wrist as I followed the map to the designated room.

Today was the first official day of lessons. Everyone had moved into their dorm rooms several days beforehand to get things sorted and to get acquainted with everyone else.  
I guess a disadvantage of making friends before school started is that we were under less pressure to make more friends, but I honestly couldn't care less; I couldn't ask for better companions.

As we made our way into the room, I spotted two empty desks next to each other and instantly sat down in one of them, Natsu heading for the other one.  
But an orange blur landed in the seat before he did.

The orange blur instantly took my hand and I found myself staring into a pair of dark eyes behind glasses.  
"Never would I have suspected to find a beautiful gem like you in Magnolia, my dear lady!" a theatrical voice rang out.  
I had no idea what was going on. Is this what it feels like to have a concussion?

"Ah, but the lady is speechless in my presence!" the voice rang out again as I shook off my initial shock. The orange blur turned out to be an orange-haired boy, who was smirking at me. Was he saying those things… to me?

An eruption of laughter started to pour out of my mouth. "PAHAHAH- a beautiful gem oh my g-AHAHAHAH"  
"Lady Lucy, it is un lady-like to snort when laughing" Natsu played along, mocking disapproval.  
"Oh whatever will I do? My lady-ness is fading!" I cried, earning a laugh from Natsu.

The look of confusion and shock on the orange haired dude's face made me take pity on him, so I stopped laughing and changed my position in his hand, shaking it.  
"I'm Lucy, please never call me Lady ever again" I smiled, waiting for him to tell me his name.  
His face changed back into a smirk and I gave him a wary look in response.

"But surely, one with such beauty should be called no less than a princess!"

I was about to tell him how ridiculous he sounded when he pulled up my hand and landed a kiss on it.  
I honestly couldn't hold back my blush, even though I was completely indifferent about his flirting. His smirk grew wider when he saw my red cheeks. He then let go of my hand and winked at me, leaning back in his chair, apparently having received the reaction he was looking for.

My expression turned dangerous as I processed what had just happened. "Who said you could-"

"Everyone grab a seat! I'm your new homeroom teacher, Mr Clive." Said a tall man as he walked in.  
I looked at Natsu who was glaring at the boy next to me for taking his seat.  
"Oi, kid, there's a seat over there" Mr Clive directed at Natsu, who shot me an 'are you okay with this?' look.  
"It's fine, I'm perfectly capable of handling flirts like Ginger over here" I told him, giving him a roll of the eyes to let him know the situation pissed me off as well.

"Call me Loke, princess. And you're going to have to handle me for your first two lessons as well." he whispered to me as I leaned away from him, pointing at my timetable.  
Well fantastic, turns out the guy was in my Astronomy class. The gods have certainly answered my prayers today, I thought sarcastically.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Don't ask me how, but Loke managed to get the seat right next to me in the back corner of the room. I almost cried when the teacher told us these would be our assigned seats for the rest of the year.

Well, time to build up an immunity to playboys.

Halfway through the lesson, I was succeeding so well that Loke started flirting with the girl in front of him, leaving me to spend energy on actually listening to the teacher rather than using it to come up with new insults for the flirt. I was running out of ginger jokes fast.

The girl eventually lost interest in Loke's compliments, so I prepared myself for another bombardment of comments about my appearance. I saw Loke's mouth open-  
When a sudden spike of something tainted the air. Electricity? No, it was… familiar. Loke closed his mouth instantly, grabbing the desk, his knuckles turning white. Had he felt it too?

Another jolt of whatever it was made me look around to see how everyone else was reacting to it.  
I was thoroughly confused to find out that the class was going on normally. Did nobody else feel like the air was about to ignite with… Magic?

My eyes widened.

This was what my magic felt like.

I felt a fush of panic clouding my thoughts. Was my magic leaking? Could it even do that? This had never happened before, mama never explained anything about thi-  
"Not now" Loke croaked next to me, loud enough for only me to hear.  
I looked back at him, realising that if he was reacting like this then he could feel the magic.

He would report me, wouldn't he?

Why had I led myself to believe things were going to be okay?

The way his hand was moving distracted me from my thoughts.  
No- it wasn't moving. It was almost like it was… fading around the edges?

Was I doing that to him? No, that isn't how my magic worked.

A memory suddenly flashed through my mind.

 _"You're ill Lucy, you need to sleep more" Cancer, my spirit, told me, placing a wet towel on my forehead._

 _I was 11 years old and suffering from an extreme fever, leaving me bed-ridden for several days. My spirits were taking turns to look after me since my father didn't give a damn._

 _It was really taking a toll on them; I could feel their magic spiking as they went through the pain of keeping their gates open to look after me. I kept begging them to go back to the spirit world, panicking when I saw them fading around the edges-_

I stared at Loke's hand, confirming that it was not a trick of the light.  
He was reacting the exact same way my spirits did when their gates were kept open for too long.  
 _Loke… what are you?_

Thank god we sat at the back of the classroom.

I instantly started forming a plan in my head so that I could help him. Sure, he was an annoying little shit, but I downright refused to leave him be if he was feeling the same terror I felt when the Royal Guard were chasing after me.

It looked like he couldn't speak at the moment, so he couldn't ask to go to the bathroom. Telling the teacher he was sick and leading him out of the classroom would only draw attention to him.  
But he needed to get out of here now, by the looks of it.

A plan formulated in my head, and I knew it was now or never.  
I walked to the front of the class, asking the teacher if I could go to the bathroom. She agreed and I practically shot out of the door, running down the hallway looking for a suitable room.

I opened a door a few steps down which happened to be a janitor's closet – perfect.  
I stepped inside, checking to make sure nobody saw me. Once inside with the door closed, I reached into my bra (I use my bra as a pocket, okay?) and pulled out my keys, calling out my most formal-looking spirit. He would look the least out of place in a school setting.  
If nobody noticed his goat-like face, that was.

"Open, gate of Capricorn!" I called, watching as said spirit appeared in front of me in a flash of gold.  
"Hello, lady Lucy, how may I serve you today?"  
"Listen Capricorn, I'm in school but something happened and I need you to find a fire alarm and pull it." I told him in a rush.  
"But Lucy, that is against the rules and is sure to get you into troub-"  
"There's no time! I need you to trust me on this, okay? Just avoid people and go back through your gate as soon as you've pulled it. Please, I'll explain later" I pleaded with him.

"I shall do as you wish." He said after a few seconds, exiting the closet after looking out for people in the hallway.  
"Thank you" I replied as we parted ways, me heading back towards the classroom to pull Loke out of the chaos that was sure to occur in the aftermath of the fire alarm going off.

Sure enough, as I reached the classroom door, I heard an incredibly loud, high pitched screeching filling the hallways. I waited, covering my ears, as an army of students started pouring out of every room, some of them chatting excitedly about where the fire was.

As the last few people headed out of my astronomy class, I looked in to see Loke, still gripping his desk as if his life depended on it, and the teacher telling him to get up.  
I hoped she wasn't close enough to see him fading away in front of her as I called her attention away from him. "One of the students outside is having a panic attack and requires assistance." I told her, grabbing her arm and leading her out.  
"Loke's just feeling a little sick, I'll make sure he gets out." I smiled reassuringly.  
Seeming keen to avoid the 'sick' boy, she thanked me and made her way out of the classroom.

My plan had worked; now I needed to actually find out what the fuck was happening.

"Loke?" I asked, approaching him.  
He glanced at me, his expression resembling a cornered animal. It was painful to see how afraid he was; this once confident boy being reduced to a scared child made me actually miss his flirting.

I decided to gain his trust first, seeing as he probably thought I was one of those people who would give him to a concentration camp.  
"Loke, I know what's happening to you, okay?"  
"Stay back!" he pleaded, not believing that I was on his side. The loud fire alarm was still pounding on my ear drums, making it hard for me to calm down, let alone calm him down.

Looks like I was going to have to give him a practical example. I looked around, double checking that nobody would witness it. Ignoring Loke's facial expression as I reached into my bra, I pulled out my most calming spirit.  
"Open, gate of Aries!" I shouted over the fire alarm, making sure he heard every word.  
The ram spirit appeared in a flash of gold, greeting me in a voice I couldn't hear over the fire alarm. Taking in her surroundings, I noticed the way her whole body stiffened when she laid her eyes on Loke.

Their eyes locked, disbelief in both of their expressions.

"Aries… how…" Loke managed to say, his body no longer looking as see-through as before. I guessed that the attack on his existence was over, for now.  
"Leo" Aries whimpered, tears streaming down her face. I reached for her hand, squeezing it in support because it looked like she needed it right now. Loke's eyes darted down to our locked hands for a second before looking back at Aries again.

The fire alarm stopped, leaving an odd ringing in my ears. As much as this resembled a heartbreaking reunion between two long-lost friends, I knew we didn't have much time left before people came back into the building.

"You guys have some explaining to do. But for now, Loke, you need to tell us how to get you back into the spirit world."  
The authority in my voice jolted them both out of their staring competition.

To my surprise, Loke's expression turned calm, a sad smile replacing his shock.  
"I… I really don't deserve that, Lucy. Please call Aries back now."

If this situation was what I considered unexpected, then what happened next made it look like an everyday occurrence.

The sound of Aries slapping Loke's cheek penetrated the silence of the school building. I honestly didn't know the timid spirit had it in her.

"I'm sorry." She said, her voice more angry than I'd ever heard it. "I thought you were dead Leo, don't say you don't deserve to live." she whispered afterwards.  
Loke looked like he was in pain, but something about the severity told me that it wasn't physical.

The sound of approaching footsteps brought me out of my shock, and I decided that the raging questions in my head would be answered later. The boy, or celestial spirit I suppose, looked like he wasn't in danger for now.

I swore to myself that I would get him back into the spirit world before he had another attack, before closing Aries's spirit gate with an apology. I would save Loke, or Leo, not only for him but for Aries and my other spirits.  
Something about the way the two spirits looked at each other told me they possessed more than friendship, and I couldn't imagine the pain they were in right now.

"Whoa Loke what did you do to Lucy to earn that slap mark?" a student asked as the class started to filter back into the classroom.  
Loke and I stayed silent as I sat back down next to him. I didn't have it in me to act like nothing had happened during the fire alarm.

A few other students asked what had happened to his face, but we both just shrugged it off, so they decided to talk about the false fire alarm instead.

"Apparently the fire turned out to be a small one in the field; they put it out pretty fast. Anticlimactic, if you ask me." I overheard one of them say.

Wait… there was actually a fire? I only asked Capricorn to pull the fire alarm, not make one…

"But the fire alarm that was pulled was on the other side of the school to the fire. Kinda confusing, don't you think?"

Another heavy load of questions piled into my head on top of the ones I already had. Fantastic.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"Hey Luce, is it true you whipped out a knife and threatened that ginger guy for asking you to sleep with him?" Natsu asked me as I entered our homeroom for end of the day registration.

My eye twitched.  
These rumours were getting out of hand and it was only the first day! Even Levy was convinced Loke and I had a fist fight over who knew the most about the solar system.  
The rumour stated that I won though, so I guess I wasn't too pissed off.

"Yeah, and right afterwards a giant flying pig started flying by, waving at us" I deadpanned.  
I sweatdropped when Natsu's confused expression told me he hadn't quite gotten the sarcasm yet.  
"They're all stupid rumours Natsu, I didn't even touch Loke"

To my surprise, Natsu started pouting. "Aww but I totally thought you were a fighter and I wanted to challenge you to a fight"

Before I could ask him whether he was actually serious, I saw my celestial spirit classmate walk in. Finally, I had been trying to corner that ginger all day!  
Mr Clive had finished registering us, so I grabbed Loke by the sleeve and started dragging him out of the room, ignoring his protests.

"Why did you have to insult the girl's weight, Loke?" asked a raven-haired boy standing outside the classroom.  
"I didn't! I swear they're all rumours, as if I would treat a lady like that" The ginger huffed, crossing his arms.  
Loke's friend smirked at me and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Sorry for playboy here, I'm Gray by the way. It's nice to meet the girl who finally saw through this guy's act" he said.  
I smiled at him, deciding to introduce myself even though I was in a rush to get some answers out of Loke.

"I'm Lucy, and I should probably confirm right now that there's very little truth to the rumours concernin- WHERE IS YOUR SHIRT?" I gasped mid-sentence, my eyes widening.  
"Ah shit, not again" Gray sighed, looking around him. Again, huh?

"Hey, Lucy's had enough guys asking to sleep with her today, put a fucking shirt on, stripper" Natsu said, appearing between me and Gray.  
"I told you it was just a rumou-"  
"what did you just call me, asshole?" Gray retorted back almost instantly, stepping up to Natsu.

I watched in disbelief as the two boys exchanged a few more insults and started fighting right there, like it was a completely normal thing to do. Maybe Natsu hadn't been joking when he asked me to fight him earlier…

I eventually snapped out of my daze, remembering that I was on a mission. Grabbing Loke's sleeve again, I dragged him into the janitor's closet where I had summoned Capricorn earlier on.

"Speak" I commanded, turning on Loke after locking the door. "And if you try to flirt with me again, I swear to god I will live up to those rumours" I threatened.  
There were a few moments of silence before Loke looked up from the floor, the pain in his eyes standing out as the only feature that reflected his long life span.

"Thank you… for taking care of Aries." He said, and I felt my initial impatience and wariness fading.  
"Of course I'm taking care of her, my spirits are my friends. She's done her fair share of caring for me as well" I replied, smiling as I recalled a memory of Aries softening my mattress so that I would sleep easier after mama died.  
"And I got to see her one last time… thank you for that as well." He smiled.

I sighed and sat next to him on the floor. We obviously needed to work on a few things here.  
"First of all… why can't you go back to the spirit world?" I asked.  
"Long story" he replied, shaking his head.  
"You really think that's going to stop me from asking?"

He chuckled darkly. "Guess not."  
I shifted my position to let him know that I was all ears. Seriously, I was dying to know the story behind this.

"Nearly 3 years ago, my former owner – a man who I was proud to call my master – got caught using magic. He was sent to a concentration camp"  
I shivered. Hearing about that sort of thing happening to other people bought the reality crashing down on me. Sensing the grief- stricken atmosphere, I let Loke pause for a minute before continuing.

"He… he told us to run. He managed to subdue the police for a few seconds in order to summon us, me and two silver keys, give us our own keys and send us on our way. I wanted to disobey but he was giving us a direct order… I couldn't…"  
he was choking on his own words now, and I put my arms around him, stroking his hair as he regained control of his breathing.

"I felt our contract dissolve a few minutes later, when he was too far gone for me to help. I needed to get him out, and I heard about this resistance group of mages who were planning a break in to get their loved ones out. We had it all planned out, spent two years on it all, but… it failed. I was the only one who managed to escape. We were foolish to think we could beat them."

I felt my heart break into pieces. Having no choice but to leave all those people behind to get captured… all your comrades… all while you're fading away because you don't even belong to this world.  
This spirit had been through too much.  
"I'm so sorry Loke, I can't even imagine the pain you're in" I whispered, not sure if I should push him for anything else.

I still had unanswered questions, though.

"How did you survive for three entire years in this world, though? And…" I continued, leaning back to look sadly into his eyes "why won't you let me send you back?"  
"I'm the strongest of the zodiacs, and I guess willpower has a part to play in it. I haven't given up on my master; I just… don't know where to start. I don't deserve to go back, Lucy. I ran away when I should have tried harder to help him." He replied, defeat evident in his tone.

"I'm starting to understand why Aries went so out of character to slap you" I seethed, not content with his excuse.  
"Because I abandoned my master, disgracing celestial spirits everywhere, I know" he replied, attempting to get up and walk out the door.

Deciding to use words rather than the ram spirit's technique to get some sense into this idiot, I stood in front of him, blocking his way.  
"Honestly, you'd think a century year old spirit would make more sense, wouldn't you? Loke, don't you see that you're looking at this all wrong? Your former master wasn't your master, he was your friend and he cared about you. He made a decision to save you when he knew he couldn't be saved himself, and I would have done the exact same thing in his situation. He wanted you to be free and-"

"BUT I'M NOT FREE! How can I be free when he's locked in there because of me?" he shouted, breaking down again. I stepped forwards, putting my hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

"It's not your fault. Don't you dare blame yourself for the way all mages are treated. It's difficult, I get it, but you can't beat yourself up like this. Aries and the others- I can feel what they're feeling right now. They're not disgraced and they miss you. They want their leader to come home."  
I finished with that, feeling warmth rush over me. I channelled all my magic into my keys, desperate to let Loke feel from his fellow spirits what I was feeling right now.

Loke gasped as faint images of all my spirits started crowding the small janitor's closet, determination set on their faces. It took all of my focus, but I let everyone out, if only for a few seconds.  
They eventually faded away and I began my ungraceful descent to the floor, having exhausted myself.  
Suddenly, I felt hands steadying me and looked into the leader of the zodiac's eyes, brimming with tears. There were distinctive crinkles at the edges, though, and I realised that he was smiling. They were happy tears. I had let him see his friends again…

"Lucy… thank you. If everyone knew this heroic level of kindness could come from a mage, there would be no concentration camps. You have done me a great service today, master" he handed me something gold.  
I visibly winced at the title he called me, and he chuckled.  
"Call me Lucy, please" I pleaded, rolling my eyes.  
"Nah, I like your facial expression better when I call you princess" he replied, smirking.  
I grimaced.  
"That's the one" he laughed.  
"Well that's enough Loke for today. Close, gate of Leo!" I said before he could stop me.  
He disappeared in a gold flash, not before I caught the look of relief on his face.

Smiling at the fact that I had made a new friend, I unlocked the closet and walked back into the hallway. Only to come face to face with a pair of intimidating red eyes, framed with piercings.

"Gihi, Someone's not very good at hiding their secrets, eh? Who knew a mage was right here under all our noses, talking so loudly and proudly of it as well." He snarled with an evil smile.

* * *

 **A/N: thank you so much for all the favourites, reviews and follows! This is my longest chapter yet and I feel like I'm finally getting to write the good parts.**  
 **sorry if the keeping keys in the bra thing weirded you out - I just couldn't think of a reason why she would wear them on a belt. I put my phone in my bra all the time so it seemed appropriate. Do you guys think it would be necessary to change this to an M rating because of the slight sexual references?**

 **Compucles - well it's a good thing I decided to clear the whole education thing up then, and thank you for the correction and suggestion! I was wondering whether I should have split this into two chapters and space out the releases but I guess longer chapters are better.**

 **Digi-fancatt - good things come to those who wait, my child**

 **-usnoozulose**


	6. Chapter 6

_Smiling at the fact that I had made a new friend, I unlocked the closet and walked back into the hallway. Only to come face to face with a pair of intimidating red eyes, framed with piercings._

 _"Gihi, Someone's not very good at hiding their secrets, eh? Who knew a mage was right here under all our noses, talking so loudly and proudly of it as well." He snarled with an evil smile._

He pushed me back into the janitor's closet, shutting the door behind him. Even if the boy hadn't been about to fuck up my life, his rebellious appearance told me that he was not good news.

I had always imagined what I would do if this exact situation happened. I pictured myself curling up into a corner, crying, shouting for help. I imagined the intense fear and hopelessness I would feel, especially if it was someone like this who busted me.

What surprised me, though, was the immediate surge of anger-fuelled adrenaline that began coursing through my veins.  
I refused to back down. A new image entered my head; an image of me fighting with my spirits, refusing to give up, and being goddamn proud of it.  
If I was going to be in a concentration camp by the end of the day, I'd rather go out fighting.

I looked straight into the eyes of the guy who threatened ruin everything, and hoped that my newfound determination would get me through this one.  
His eyes widened slightly as I reached for my strongest spirit; Taurus. The magical exhaustion I felt previously was replaced by a new surge of energy.

"Open, gate of Taurus!" I called. The surprised look on the pierced guy's face would have been comical if I wasn't fighting for my life.  
The giant cow spirit appeared in a flash of gold, and I noticed that the hearts in his eyes he usually reserved for me were replaced by cold anger; reflecting my current expression.

"I will protect Luuuucy's body!" he shouted, lifting up his axe.  
"Taurus, stay by me but don't attack… yet." I instructed. After all, it would be difficult to hide the boy's mangled body, and I'd rather use intimidation than violence if I could help it.  
"Listen here, punk. You neither saw nor heard anything about this, do you understand? Tell anyone and I'll set my loyal friend here on you." I spat, gesturing at Taurus.  
"If you tell, I'll know. I've already put a tracking curse on you" I lied. Might as well take advantage of the lies they spread about mages, right?

I stared up at the tall boy, waiting for any indication that he didn't believe me, in which case I'd resort to violence.  
"You could have denied it, you know. I didn't have a voice recorder or nothing." He advised, no longer looking shocked.  
… Was this idiot giving me advice? I could kill him in an instant and he's acting like I just admitted to something petty like not doing my homework? What on earth did it take to scare this guy? I had just hypothetically cursed him, for crying out loud!

"I have all the proof I need now." He continued, smirking at me.  
Violence it is, then.  
I gave a small gesture and Taurus immediately started bringing his axe down on the boy. It wouldn't kill him but it would hopefully just seriously maim him…

The sound of metal against metal resonated throughout the small room, making me flinch so hard I jumped.  
I blinked, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. The boy had gone to protect his body using his arm as a shield against the axe. But instead of cutting through his arm…  
The axe clanged against it, only succeeding in knocking the boy a little off balance.

"Luuuuuucy I-" Taurus said, before disappearing. Damn it, my magical exhaustion had finally caught up with me.  
I was practically defenceless now. Metal face had somehow defended himself, and I couldn't get my mind to shut up about how my spirits depended on me, or how Loke was going to lose his second master for the same bloody reason as before…  
No, I refused to let that happen. I would find a way out of this… somehow.

"Oi bunny girl, quit attacking me and let's just talk"  
He just wanted a talk, did he? Oh, I'd give him a talk if he wanted one so much.  
"And after our nice chat you're going to go and snitch to all your buddies about me, and what will happen then?" I seethed, not allowing him to say anything else as I continued. "I'll get sent to somewhere that will most likely result in my death. But people like you have no clue-"

I stopped mid-sentence when he held up his arm he had used to block Taurus's attack. Before, I was in too much of a panic to process how he had been able to do so but…  
He had a metal arm. Metal.  
I watched in awe as skin started crawling from his elbow to his fingers, replacing the metal in a smooth motion. Magic. This guy is…

"Now that I have your attention, you should know that you suck at keeping this secret of yours." He raised his eyebrow at me, looking unimpressed.  
"you're… you're not…-"  
"No, bunny girl. I'm not turning you in. I'm giving you advice like a good citizen. Now quit shaking, you look pathetic." He mockingly grinned; his pointed teeth making it look more evil than he probably meant it to be.  
I breathed deeply, not believing my luck, but also not able to excuse this guy's rudeness. What can I say, I was bought up to value proper manners.

"WELL WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU GIANT RUSTY GIRDER? AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING BUNNY?" I shouted, much louder than I had intended. You can't blame me really, I was still an emotional wreck after dealing with both Loke and the prospect of getting caught.  
Granted, I should have been happy that I was no longer alone; this guy was the first human mage I had ever met if I wasn't counting mama, but he didn't seem like the sort of person I'd be able to confide in.  
Did it make me a bad person if I sort of wished it had been someone who didn't give off the impression that they liked beating up people for fun?

"Gihi" he laughed. Why did even his laugh sound intimidating? "It was fun to watch you squirm, bunny girl. And you're bunny girl because you nearly touched the ceiling when your cow friend's axe hit my arm. Only bunnies jump that high." He concluded, crossing his arms confidently.  
Oh, how I wanted to wipe that smirk off his face.

"Listen, I don't care if you're the only other mage I know. Mess with me like that again, and I'll conduct an experiment with my knee to see whether your privates are able to turn into metal upon impact. Got it?" I growled.  
His expression softened a bit, though the change as so small it's possible I had imagined it. Wait, had I actually succeeded in scaring him?

"You're the only other mage I know too" he said quietly.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

As soon as I got back to my dorm room, I changed into my cute pyjamas with bunnies on it and went straight to bed, even though it was only 4:30 in the afternoon. Thank god I didn't have work today.  
Magic exhaustion was even worse than physical exhaustion, I was surprised to find out. I'd never had to stretch my magic out as far as I did today… I would definitely need to work on that if I needed to defend myself in the future. If that boy, Gajeel as he introduced himself, hadn't been a mage, I would have really been in trouble.

As much as I hated to admit it, he was right about using the art of denial rather than giving possible captors further proof of my magic.  
He and I, upon departure from the small closet to the empty hallway, had an unspoken agreement to have each other's backs as fellow mages. I guess you would call it a friendship if you omitted the fact that he was an unapologetic asshole.

Nevertheless, I took comfort in the fact that I really wasn't alone as I drifted off into an easy sleep.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

You know those nightmares that you have to mentally pull yourself out of because you refuse to believe that what's happening is true? Yeah, well, I just had one of those, and I was now lying in bed refusing to go back to sleep. No prizes for guessing what the nightmare was about.

I looked at my alarm clock to see that it was 3am; too early to get up for school.  
I was pondering whether I should call out a spirit for company when I heard a noise coming from my window… it sounded like someone was lifting it up…

Shit, were those footsteps I heard? My body seemed to react on instinct as I heard the footsteps start to approach me.  
"FREEZE!" I shouted, sitting up, facing the intruder and wielding one of my keys in defence. It was too dark for me to make out who the creeper was.

"Luce, that's a key." The intruder chuckled. That obnoxious voice…  
"What the hell are you doing here, Natsu?" I hissed, bringing down my key. I noticed with embarrassment that it was Plue's key; he wouldn't have been much help in a real fight.  
"Just looking around" Natsu replied nonchalantly, grinning at me.

I stared at him in disbelief for a few seconds, and then it struck me.  
"Natsu… I live on the fourth floor. How on earth did you get up here?" I asked. Had the idiot risked his life to climb the building?  
Ignoring my question, he reached behind his back to grab a familiar-looking blue furball.  
"Happy wants to know if you have any fish, he's hungry." He stated.

Still in a state of complete and utter confusion, I absentmindedly pointed towards the small mini fridge I kept snacks in. As they helped themselves, I mentally asked myself why I wasn't freaking out about a boy in my room. Plus, I still didn't understand why he had chosen here, of all places, to 'look around'.

"It's three in the morning. Why are you even up?" I asked.  
"I could ask you the same question." He replied, not looking at me.  
"You're no ninja, Natsu. You woke me up" I lied, attempting to act pissed off. "And climbing the building is stupid; you could have hurt yourself. Next time, knock on my door at a reasonable hour." I huffed, lying back down.

"Next time?" he asked. Ugh, I could practically hear the smirk on his face.  
"Piss off already" I replied bluntly.  
He was silent for a few seconds. Didn't he usually brush me off when I said things like that? Confused, I sat back up to look at his face.  
There was no trace of a smile, or even a smirk in his expression as he stared at the floor. I realised that I had never seen him looking so… serious before.  
Something was definitely wrong.

"Natsu… why are you really here?" I whispered.  
"I just… listen, I don't know about your situation and it's okay that you won't tell me but… do you think you'll end up leaving here?" he said it slowly as if he was struggling with phrasing it.

I sighed. How did this topic even come up?  
"I'm not going to insult you by telling white lies" I stated. "There is a chance I'll have to leave."  
"Do you want to leave?" he asked, looking hurt.

"Of course not, Natsu. What I have here in Magnolia – it's been the best experience of my life even though it's only been a few weeks." A sad smile played on my lips as I said that. "I'm going to be devastated if I have to go but… it might get dangerous for me." I admitted.  
"Then don't leave, I can protect you, Luce!" he shouted, making me jump as he was suddenly at my side.

I looked at him sadly, tears threatening to fall at the irony of it all. Chances are, he could be the one I need protecting from.  
"I don't doubt that, Natsu. It's just-"  
"My dad left me too, you know. He didn't say anything. One day, he just wasn't there" his voice was laced with more confusion than anger. My breath hitched as I realised that he was telling me something about his past that had hurt him, a lot by the sound of it. Oh, Natsu…  
"I don't want my friends to leave me, you know?" he added, keeping eye contact with me.

No, Natsu wasn't supposed to sound this broken. He was supposed to be carefree, always smiling and teasing the hell out of me. Someone like him didn't deserve to feel like this. I felt a hint of anger at his dad for leaving him, granted I didn't know the reasoning behind it.  
But here was Natsu, My best friend who had unknowingly saved my life, and one of the strongest people I knew, letting his vulnerabilities show. I decided that I should return the favour; making us both as vulnerable as each other.

"My mother died when I was a young girl" I said quietly. "I know what it's like to be without a parent. It was a gradual thing… I saw it coming but that didn't make it any less painful" I explained, looking down at my feet.  
"I miss her every day and I… It's kinda weird but I even find myself talking to her in my head sometimes, you know?"

"Yeah, I know" Natsu replied softly.  
We finally made eye contact, empathy reflected in both expressions. The distance closed between us and I found myself in a hug as we gripped tightly onto each other. We stayed like that for a good minute or two before I broke the silence.

"You're warm" I commented truthfully. I'd never really appreciated his ability as a human radiator until now.  
"Nice pyjamas" he replied slyly.  
My eyes widened when I remembered that I was wearing oversized pyjamas made for an 8 year old.  
"What are those… bunnies?" he chuckled.

I instantly pushed him away, jumping under the covers on my bed.  
"Way to ruin the moment, moron" oh god, I was already blushing. "First Gajeel and now you-"

"Hold up, Gajeel? That guy's bad news, Luce, what's this got to do with him?" he said with a worried expression.  
Huh, I guess Gajeel already had a reputation after the first day. Then again, I probably did as well because of all those stupid rumours.  
"He gifted me with the nickname of bunny girl, that's all" I replied, rolling my eyes.

"Hey, do you reckon he'll give me a nickname too?" Natsu asked excitedly after a few seconds, evidently forgetting about his concern for me. His innocent excitement was so cute it made me giggle.

My brain short circuited as I registered that I had just thought of Natsu as cute. What the hell was that? In order to hide the new blush on my face, I looked back at the clock.

"There's still enough time for us to get some sleep before school, Natsu." I yawned, pulling the covers over my head. When I heard him walking towards the window though, I yanked the covers off, rushing towards him. I caught him just before he was about to jump out, Happy on his back.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISH? USE THE FUCKING DOOR, NUMBSKULL" I shouted in his ear, making him wince.  
"Ouch, quit hurting my ears you weirdo. You just had to ask, you know" he grumbled.  
"Gee, you're welcome Natsu, you really know how to thank someone for saving your life" I deadpanned, dragging him out of the door and shutting it in his face with a loud bang.

I felt so sorry for the people with rooms next to me, I really did.

* * *

 **A/N: hey guys, updates might be slow for the next few days because of exams. I definitely plan on continuing this story though, so look out for it!  
Confession: Gajeel is totally my favourite character in the franchise, and I really want to write a fanfiction in his point of view if I can think of a good storyline. **

**thank you to all my reviewers, favouriters and followers, and a special thanks to Compucles and MissCelestialHeart for the advice which I took into account!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	7. Chapter 7

Friday came so quickly, it was astonishing how fast time went when almost all my time was occupied by school, homework and working at Fairy Tail.  
I also had time to meet all sorts of people at Magnolia college; I had never been surrounded by such… eccentric people in my life. I loved it.

For example, there was Erza who had approached me in the lunch line one day to congratulate me on my black belt in karate which I had demonstrated whilst beating up Loke (yep, the rumours were still going strong).  
I decided that after a day of dealing with Loke's many 'girlfriends' accusing me of killing him after he didn't show up for school, I would train my magic by attempting to keep him out during his lessons. It turned out to be pretty exhausting, but I was gradually getting used to the 6 hours every day.  
Another motive for keeping him out was because I felt my heart swell with happiness whenever he laughed or smiled after knowing what his past was like, but I wasn't going to admit that to him.

Anyway, Erza turns out to actually have a black belt in karate. And judo. Oh, and Taekwondo. Yeah, I wouldn't have believed her either if she hadn't demonstrated it perfectly whilst breaking up a fight between Natsu and Gray. She also had some pretty neat certificates hung up in her dorm room, along with pictures of strawberry flavoured desserts.  
'This girl is outstanding.' Was the only thought I had in my mind when I saw this.

Lisanna, Mira's younger sibling, approached me to talk several times during the week and I always commented on how sweet she was to anyone who would listen.  
Also, after getting to know Gray a bit better after the last few days, we became fast friends. Funnily enough, I eventually got used to his ridiculous stripping habit, and we bonded over how cold our hands got due to our crappy blood circulation. We were touching each other's hands to compare coldness when I met another person; Juvia.

Juvia HATED me and I had no idea why. Something about me being her arch nemesis? Rival or something? Whatever, all I knew was that Gray had told me not to worry about her and subdued her before she tested my… *ahem* black belt in karate.

It was the start of lunch now, so I headed towards the cafeteria to get some food.  
"Oi bunny girl, walk with me" Gajeel grunted, coming up behind me.  
"But… food… Hunger" I managed to get out as he unexpectedly grabbed the back of my collar to pull me to a secluded side of the cafeteria, away from the lunch line.

"Hey, get off Luce you freakin' emo!" Natsu shouted, stomping his way towards us.  
Gajeel slowed down and smirked at Natsu. "Make me" he taunted.  
I started sweating profusely as they both got into fighting positions with me in the middle. Oh god, these idiots weren't even thinking about what would happen to me if I was caught in the crossfire of their violence…

"Easy now, guys. Natsu, it's okay, seriously. Gajeel just wants to talk, right?" I had actually offered him an ear to talk to after he told me I was the only mage he knew, but I didn't think he would take me up on it.  
"Yeah, just a friendly talk." Gajeel said, purposefully sounding sarcastic to rile Natsu up.  
Before Natsu could fight anymore, the iron giant started dragging me off again; not violently but just enough to make me pick up my pace. I shot Natsu an 'I got this' look before joining Gajeel at a deserted table.

"So what's up?" I asked, noticing he was looking around for anyone who could possibly overhear us.  
"I've just got a few questions to ask, about you being a mage and everything." He said in a low voice.  
"I'll answer them if you apologise to my friend, Levy, for making fun of her in the library" I replied with a cunning smile. Levy seemed pretty upset by this guy, and I wasn't about to let him get away with that.

"Who, Shrimp? What for?" he asked dumbly.  
"you know what? I'm too tired right now to answer any questions-"  
"FINE! I'll apologise to her after you answer my questions. Deal?" he interrupted, fuming at the fact that I had leverage on him.

I nodded and he leaned back in his chair, looking contemplative as he thought of how to phrase his question.  
"Okay so… who raised you?" he asked eventually.  
"My mother, Layla." I answered. Why was he interested in this?  
"Let me rephrase that. What raised you?"  
"My mother wasn't an 'it', thank you very much" I replied harshly.  
He sighed before rushing his next question; "No I didn't mean… ugh, so your mother wasn't a dragon, was she?"

The look I gave him made him roll his eyes.  
"So that's a no then." He said disappointedly after a few seconds of silence.  
"I'm having a little trouble understanding why on earth you would ask me a question like that..." I hissed. Seriously, wasn't he going to explain himself?

"I thought that being bought up by a dragon might be a mage thing, is all" he explained. Was that… grief I detected in his voice when he said the word 'dragon'?  
"You… you were bought up by a dragon? Dragons exist?" I asked with wonder. I thought about calling bullshit but Gajeel always had a smirk on his face when he was messing with people. Right now, he just looked a bit… lost.

He nodded, unsmiling. The fact that he wasn't smiling… did that mean…  
"What happened to the dragon that raised you?" I asked delicately, surprised at the fact that I had uncovered this solemn side of Gajeel.  
"The old geezer disappeared. He didn't say anything. One day, he just wasn't there." He said without emotion.  
A wave of déjà vu hit me as I recalled that Natsu had described the loss of his dad in the exact same way a few days ago. Weird.

"I'm sorry, Gajeel." I said, not knowing what else to say. Everyone really seemed to have a backstory, didn't they?  
"S'okay. Dragons don't go down easily, especially not my dad." He said, his voice rising with pride as he smirked a little.

I smiled at him, deciding that Gajeel was in fact someone I would call a friend.  
My smile was short-lived however, as I winced in pain.  
"Bunny girl?" Gajeel asked with caution.  
"Ugh, keeping Loke's gate open is getting painful." I explained, breathing deeply as the pain somewhat subsided. Gajeel raised his eyebrow, looking slightly confused. Hadn't I already told him the situation?  
"You're the stupidest person I know, putting yourself through pain like that." He commented.  
I glared at him and left, saying that I needed to go get some air.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"NATSU YOU IDIOT, WE'VE ALREADY HAD A FIRE THIS WEEK, WHY YOU GOTTA REPLICATE IT, HUH?" I shouted, frantically looking to see if there was anything highly flammable nearby.  
"Cool it, Luce. It ain't gonna spread." The pinkette grinned casually, rubbing the back of his head.  
My plan to 'get some air' was going so well until I just had to stumble across my best friend next to a large trash can with fire spewing out of it.

Breathing deeply, I attempted to calm myself before deciding how to handle this.  
"Okay, first things first, give me your lighter." I put out my hand, waiting for him to comply.  
Natsu grumbled immaturely as he dug deep into his bag and bought out a 20 pack of matches. So he was old fashioned when it came to lighting fires, huh?  
"Next, -"  
"I'm gonna go get a fire extinguisher, watch the fire!" he interrupted, running off back into the building.

It took me a few seconds to process what happened. "You want me to… watch the fire?" I repeated with confusion to nobody in particular. What use was watching the damn fire?  
"Lucy! Why is that trash can on fire?" Erza bellowed at me, running in my direction. Lisanna was behind her, giggling at how riled up Erza was getting.

"I can explain, Natsu-"  
"So Natsu is behind this, huh? I'm going to have to fight some more discipline into that boy…" Erza interrupted my frantic explanation.  
"Maybe he was cold?" Lisanna suggested, attempting to defend Natsu's actions. Unsurprisingly, she was the only one who bothered to do so. That dimwit was going to get a good Lucy kicking for leaving me in this situation…  
"Never mind why that pyromaniac decided to light a fire on school grounds, we need to put this out before a teacher-"

"You idiot kids, what's the point of attempting to trigger the fire alarm outside of lesson hours?" Mr Clive grumbled, suddenly behind us.  
Speak of the devil.  
Oh no, no way was I going to get in trouble for Natsu's idiocy.

"Mr Clive, it-"  
"Saturday detention, all three of you." He interrupted sternly.  
I exchanged horrified expressions with the two other girls.  
"But Mr-"  
"No buts, you interrupted my lunch for this!" he whined.

I sweat dropped; wasn't anyone going to let me finish a bloody sentence today?  
Lisanna didn't say anything; the poor girl probably wasn't used to getting into trouble. Erza's face was shadowed over and I swear I could see a deadly aura emitting off her.  
I wondered whether Natsu would even be conscious for the next few days after dealing with her…

"Okay, you three run off now whilst I sort this out. Remember, 9am sharp tomorrow and the number of hours the detention will last for will depend on your behaviour." Mr Clive recalled effortlessly as if it was something he said every day.  
Come to think of it, it probably was.

* * *

 **A/N: I guess you could call this filler, but I'm just setting stuff up for the next chapter (I'm planning for a lot of interesting things to happen in the next chapter...)**  
 **I really plan on developing the BROtp between Lucy and Gajeel, and I should also mention that this fic is going to contain ships other than Nalu**

 **For those wondering, I plan on introducing Cana and Wendy (and a few others but you'll find out later) later on into the story. Also, I've chosen some side characters to be normal people without magic, just to make the story a little more interesting**

 **Please leave me some more reviews if you like the story! Honestly, they really make my day**

 **-usnoozulose**


	8. Chapter 8

"I can't believe I have to keep you out during detention, I was totally going to rest today" I whined.  
"But princess, look at the bright side! Now we can get to know each other better!" Loke chimed, refusing to let go of my hand as we walked towards detention.

Loke had surprised me last night by suddenly opening his own gate in order to tell me that he had Saturday detention.  
He ended up with a red foot-shaped bruise on his cheek.  
Why, you ask? Not because of the detention, it's not like I'm his mother.  
The bastard opened his own gate right next to me _whilst I was in the shower. Naked._

His flirting has been even more ridiculous and over-the-top ever since. I know he has a thing going with Aries, so I can't for the life of me even begin to understand what he gets out of my constant rejection.  
Whatever, celestial spirits have always been lunatics.

We entered Mr Clive's room to find out we weren't the only ones who had pissed the teacher off yesterday.  
"I can't believe I have to waste my Saturday because you couldn't keep your damn mouth shut, asswipe!" Gray shouted, standing up on his desk to make himself taller than his opponent.  
"Well at least I don't have a stripping habit! Seriously dude, nobody wants to see your pale ass!" Natsu taunted back, getting up on his own desk.

I noticed Lisanna backing away from the two whilst Erza stood her ground, looking like the sound of a pin dropping would be the last straw in unleashing her fury.  
However, everyone else's focus was on the idiotic fight between to two males. I don't think they even realised Loke and I had entered…

"I'm going to get those two back for yesterday" The spirit mumbled next to me.  
Before I knew it, everything had gone to shit. Loke pounced forwards like the… *ahem* majestic lion he was before getting the full force of Natsu's fist and fast reflexes.  
Gray took this opportunity to crouch down and sweep his leg against Natsu's shins, making him lose balance. Admiring his work, he hadn't registered Loke's recovery until the Lion's arms had him in a headlock. Meanwhile, Natsu was preparing his next attack on the both of them

You know in cartoons when they cover up fight scenes with a dust cloud to show that shit it going down? Yeah, it was a lot like that, but it was more of a blur than a dust cloud. What even were these people?  
Suddenly, the blurs stopped in mid-air.  
"WHAT DID IT TELL YOU BOYS ABOUT FIGHTING?" a deadly voice rung out. I realised with relief that Erza had finally snapped and broke up the fight.

She had one leg on Gray's chest, keeping him on the ground, whilst the other two boy's ears were being pinched angrily.  
I saw nothing but fear in their eyes (I couldn't blame them; Erza was terrifying) until Natsu's eyes locked onto mine.

"Luce! What are you doing here?" his entire demeanour changed; he was now smiling broadly instead of looking like a scolded toddler.  
I scowled at him when I thought of the answer to that question.  
"I started a fire in a trash can, apparently." I seethed, crossing my arms. Erza had let him go at this point, content that he no longer seemed to want to fight. Her angry expression reflected mine, though, since it was Natsu's fault we were both here.

"Well I got detention for teaching Gray and Loke a lesson" he laughed, totally oblivious to the death stares being pointed at him.  
I considered waiting for him to understand what a jerk he was, but my rage made me stomp towards him, intent on giving him an extra powerful Lucy kick.  
That was, until I felt hands holding me back.

"Natsu, you lit the fire. Lucy, Erza and I got the blame." Lisanna calmly explained, only sounding slightly miffed as she held me back. I don't think I'll ever understand how this girl can retain her kind personality in a situation like this.  
Realisation dawned on Natsu's face and I felt like screaming halleluiah to the sky.  
"Oh right, I was supposed to get the fire extinguisher" he said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head, "I got distracted by stripper and ginger" he continued.

"You were supposed to not start the fire in the first place, Pinky" I grumbled. No apology, huh?  
"But Luuuuucyyyy-"  
"Oh my god, 'pinky'! Why haven't I ever thought of that one?" Gray interrupted Natsu's whine.  
I rolled my eyes as the two of them started fighting again. Typical.

My eyes widened when I saw the next two people walk in.  
"Levy? Gajeel? You guys too?" I asked.  
Gajeel growled at me and I sweatdropped, wondering if he was actually related to his dragon parent rather than just being an adoptee.  
"This is your fault bunny girl, you were the one who told me to-"

"This is not Lucy's fault!" Levy interrupted him, somehow overpowering his low voice with an authoritative tone. "You don't call someone 'shrimp' while you're apologising to them for calling them shrimp!"  
"Yeah well you didn't have to shout the whole place down with your complaints about me!" Gajeel retorted, standing over Levy, effectively dwarfing her.  
To my surprise, she didn't seem in the least bit intimidated.  
"Well you should learn some respect for other people." Levy said, before heading towards me.

"Detention for making noise in the library, huh?" I guessed as she led me to the back of the classroom where we took our seats.  
She nodded, her stiff motions giving off the impression that she was still angry. Now was definitely not the best time to provoke her… but I couldn't help it.  
I leaned towards her and whispered "old married couple" in her ear.  
I kind of understood why people enjoyed pissing me off now; if my reactions were anything like hers then it was bloody hilarious.

* * *

Mr Clive, after checking we were all here, didn't even stay to make sure we were out of trouble. He said something about stalking his daughter on a date or something…

Whoever his daughter was, I was praying for her.  
The teacher didn't give us a time when he'd be back, though, so we didn't want to ditch in case he returned to an empty room.

"Luuuuucyyyy I'm bored" Natsu drawled, bringing up a chair to sit on the other side of my desk.  
"Go fight Gray" I snapped, my patience wearing thin.  
"But Gray's no fun" he complained, putting his head on the desk. "Besides, all he's doing is getting paranoid about that Juvia girl being outside, but I don't see nothing" He continued, squinting out of the window.

I sighed, deciding it was time to stop waiting for Natsu to read my body language. "I'm still pissed off with you, you know." I said, shoving his head off my table.  
Natsu just stared at me, probably at a loss of what to say.  
Ignoring his expression, I decided to occupy myself with something to pass the time. Fumbling in my pockets, my hand touched a small cardboard box. Oh right, I'd forgotten all about the 20 pack of matches I confiscated from Natsu!

Turning away from him to sit somewhere else, I emptied the packet on the desk and started making shapes with the little red-tipped sticks.  
I was getting really into it; it took me a while to notice…  
I counted the matches several times, each time adding up a total of 20. What happened to the match Natsu had used to start the fire?  
Don't tell me that cheeky bastard had multiple packs of these and he just gave me a spare one!

I looked up to find Natsu so I could shout at him when… Something large outside caught my eye.

No, it couldn't be.  
For a wild moment I thought I was hallucinating spectacularly.  
But it looked so real…  
What… What the fuck was that?

"Guys" was all I could get out. My voice was laced with fear and confusion, which instantly grabbed everyone's attention.  
As I watched the thing get closer, the first thing I noticed was its empty red eyes, standing out against its shiny black scales. It was the size of a mini bus and resembled a large reptilian panther with horns and a pointed tail. Everything about it screamed danger.  
And it was coming straight at us. Fast.

The gasps I heard confirmed that it was in fact real, snapping me out of my surreal daze. My gut told me that this thing's first instinct would be to kill.  
But there was no way we could outrun that thing…

It was getting closer and closer; its alarmingly large, sharp teeth and claws becoming more noticeable. I started backing away from the window, adrenaline battling with the panic in me.

Before I knew it, it had crashed through the wall, momentarily dazing itself. Bricks and debris flew everywhere, and I hoped that none of it had hit anyone.  
I looked around to see if everyone was okay, but my priority was to find Gajeel. At first, all I could see was a flash of scarlet hair under a pile of bricks, along with another pale body.  
As the adrenaline started to overcome my panic, I realised that this would be a situation where we would have to fight.  
And no matter the consequences, we mages would have to fight to protect our friends. It was a matter of unfortunate circumstance, even though I didn't even understand what exactly had caused this circumstance. There was no time to ponder it.

My eyes landed on him; he was standing in front of Levy, looking at me intensely. I could see metal already replacing the skin on his arms.  
That was the last push I needed before I nodded at him, silently communicating that we would fight together. Well, I would use my magic to power Loke's attacks, at least.  
In the few seconds that this exchange took place, the monster had started violently knocking over the desks, seemingly desperate to get to its prey; us.

"Loke" was all I had to utter before the lion spirit pounced on the monster.  
"REGULUS IMPACT!" he shouted, punching the monster's head with a downwards force as his fist lit up with a blinding light.  
The monster shrieked in pain, but didn't crumble under the impact. This had been my first time seeing Loke in action, and whilst his power was impressive beyond my expectations, it filled me with hopelessness to see what little damage it had done.  
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gajeel starting to approach the monster, and mentally slapped myself for momentarily giving up. Loke would be able to rely on the iron giant; I was sure of it.

The lion spirit was now completely focused on the monster, preparing another attack when…  
The thing used its strong hind legs to propel itself straight at me, ignoring and dodging Loke completely.  
My eyes widened in fear in the split second it took to reach me. There was nothing anybody could do as it swiped me to the other side of the room with its massive paw; its claws making deep cuts along the side of my ribs.

I hit the wall, not yet registering the pain I was in.  
For what seemed like minutes, everything was spinning, and I registered a few cries of "Lucy!" before the agony I was in finally dawned on me.  
I opened my eyes again to see approaching dead red eyes only a few metres away from me. Whatever it was, it was strong, and I knew I wouldn't survive another attack from it.  
My only happy thought was that it seemed to only be targeting me; maybe the others would get a chance to escape…

"Run" I spat out, hoping that the others would hear me.  
I stared down the monster as it approached me, not allowing my last moments to be clouded with fear.  
But, something blocked my view.  
I focused my eyes onto Natsu, who was now facing the monster.  
No… no, Natsu, please, run, you idiot!  
I wanted to shout at him to run but my strength was fading, fast. All I could do was sit against the wall that I had impacted upon, watching as my best friend did something that would end in his death…

"I'm sorry, Luce." He said, his voice filled with determination.  
And he suddenly just… lit up.  
No, not like a lightbulb. More like a campfire.  
I watched in awe as fire leaked out of his arms; the warmth reaching me where I sat. The fire was coming from him. He was making fire.  
Natsu was… a mage.  
"Natsu" I whispered, before unconsciousness took over.

* * *

 **A/N: I know a monster seems kind of out of place in this modern AU story, but there will be a good explanation in the next chapter, believe me  
Since this is a world where magic is banned, it would make sense that the characters aren't as strong as they are in the anime/manga. I do plan on making them stronger throughout the story, though!  
Also, I'm currently debating whether or not to make Juvia have magic. Thoughts?**

 **-usnoozulose**


	9. Chapter 9

"WHAT HAPPENED TO LOKE?"

Ugh, would that person just shut up? They were giving me a headache…

"IS HE DEAD? HE JUST DISAPPEARED!"

Wait, what? What was this about?  
As I came to my senses, I registered the fact that I was lying on a hard floor. My ribs really hurt and a lot of dust was getting caught in my throat…  
I started coughing, opening my eyes to see a scene of complete and utter destruction.  
Then the memories all came flooding back.

"Lucy, thank god you're awake! NOW PLEASE TELL US GAJEEL ISN'T BULLSHITTING US! DO YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO LOKE? IS HE A SPIRIT THINGY? IS IT TRUE?" Gray appeared beside me, not fully allowing me to recover mentally to waking up in this situation.  
I couldn't process this right now. All I could think of was my last memory before I blacked out; the image of Natsu getting ready to fight that… thing.  
Natsu…

 _Was he okay?_

I suddenly attempted to sit up in order to search for him, only for the pain in my ribs to become blinding. Wincing, I fell back down to the ground.

"Gray, you do not interrogate someone with a possible concussion! What's wrong with you?" Levy huffed, pushing Gray aside and kneeling next to me.  
"Lucy? Do you remember what happened?" she asked gently.

"Is Natsu okay?" I asked, ignoring her question. Of course I had to be all moody with him before this happened, he could be dead for all I know…  
Levy's giggle confused me.  
"Oh, she remembers" Gajeel mused. "Flame head went and knocked himself out but he'll be fine. The rest of us are fine too, thanks for asking."

I sighed in relief, ignoring the fact that Gajeel was teasing me. Of course I was going to ask how Natsu was; he was two metres away from the beast the last time I saw him!

"WHAT ABOUT LOKE?" Gray shouted, this time getting my attention.  
"Loke's fine" I replied, touching his key. I could still feel warm magic coming from it.  
Gajeel muttered a "told you" before I continued, "He's probably a bit roughed up but he's recovering in the spirit world."

There was a long pause and I covered my mouth, realising what I had just said.  
There was no denying it now, was there? Oh my god, I needed to get out of here before they turned me in…  
My eyes met with Gajeel's and he seemed to have read my mind. "They're mages, bunny girl. Relax."

My eyes widened and landed on Levy and Gray. Behind them, I saw Erza and Juvia tending to two unconscious bodies.  
Everyone who was conscious looked back at me, smiles on their faces. Even Juvia.  
I raised a single eyebrow. There was no way…

Sensing my disbelief, Gray raised his hand and I saw a sort of blue, icy light emanating off it. I sat up, slower this time to avoid pain, to see that he had formed a rose made out of ice in his palm.  
A small smile tugged at my lips. No wonder he had colder hands than I did…  
Suddenly, a small rain cloud appeared above the rose. I watched in confusion as it battered the rose with warm water, causing it to melt.  
Gray, on the other hand, simply rolled his eyes.

"WHY DID GRAY MAKE A ROSE FOR LOVE RIVAL AND NOT JUVIA?" the blue-haired girl wailed, interrupting Gray's exclamation.  
The realisation then came to me.  
"Juvia, you made that rain cloud?" I asked, enthusiasm and awe evident in my voice. Everyone's magic was so interesting and diverse, I had to wonder whether I was dreaming. I couldn't even begin to care that Juvia thought I was her rival.

The girl stopped steaming at the ears angrily. "Yes, Juvia is water and controls water" she replied with a thoughtful look at me.  
"Yeah, the debris from the broken wall passed right through her. That's why she's the only one who doesn't look like shit right now." Gray muttered.

Whilst Gray was dealing with Juvia thanking him over and over again for his 'compliment', I asked Levy and Erza about their magic. Levy, it turns out, is good with a pen. Very good. She can write things in the air and they form out of nothing! She also dabbles in replication magic, which explains how she forged my GCSE documents.  
Erza, on the other hand, takes full advantage of her amazing fighting skills by re-equipping all sorts of weapons and armour to use at her disposal.

Whilst waiting for Natsu and Lisanna to recover so that we could decide what we were going to do about this destructed classroom, we were all taking turns demonstrating our magic.  
That is, until I noticed Gajeel's sudden head-turn towards the doorway.  
Where Mr Clive was standing, gawking at the magic being produced by the kids who hadn't noticed him yet.  
Well, shit.

"After this, you lot are going to explain to me what the fuck happened in here" he sighed, composing himself quite spectacularly.  
Before I had any time to question why he was being so nonchalant, he kneeled down, placing his palm flat on the ground.  
"Hold on to something" he smirked, before I felt a huge wave of magic passing through the floor under me. It reminded me of… destruction.

Suddenly, the floor started to tremble.  
Okay, so, observation 1: Mr Clive was a mage. There are a lot of these discoveries going on today.  
Observation 2: HE WAS CAUSING AN EARTHQUAKE?

I heard distant screams which told me that the earthquake was taking place over a rather large area. Just how powerful was this guy…? And was he dangerous?  
Looking outside, the idea struck me.  
Observation 3: the inside of our destructed classroom now looked very similar to the carnage everywhere else.

When the earthquake stopped, everyone looked at the teacher like he was a threat, so I decided to voice my inference out loud.  
"Mr Clive… thank you for helping us hide what happened here" while I said this, relief replaced the terror on everyone else's face.

He stood up tall, a smile taking over his face. He must really enjoy using his magic…  
"Please, call me Gildarts. Who would have known a bunch of kids-"

"YOU TRIED TO KILL US!" a terrified voice from the other side of the room interrupted him.  
I turned around to see a fear-stricken Lisanna dragging herself away from us in a panic.  
"Lisanna…" Erza adopted a calm tone to attempt to sooth the girl.  
"STAY AWAY FROM ME! I KNOW YOU'RE A MAGE!" she shouted back at the red head with venom.

Oh shit, we were arrogant after finding out everyone was a mage; we just assumed she was one too…  
Everyone seemed at a loss of what to say. Her sudden change in personality reminded me of a more terrifying version of Aries slapping Loke.

"You were my friends… I can't believe it…" Lisanna mumbled to herself  
"We're still your friends" Levy said delicately.  
"I WILL NEVER BE FRIENDS WITH MAGES! THEY DO HORRIBLE THINGS TO PEOPLE!" she cried, going into hysterics. "Please… I don't care what you do with me but please don't hurt my family or the kids at this college." She pleaded.

"Lisanna…" I tried to tell her that she had it all wrong, but she was definitely not going to listen to us now. It really pained me, actually getting the reaction to magic that I had expected all my life.  
She continued babbling about curses and us killing her, flinching whenever we moved and sobbing in fear.  
I hated to use magic in a situation like this, but she really needed something to calm her down right now.

I pulled out the silver key in mind, calling, "Open, gate of Lyra!"  
The spirit of a young girl carrying a harp appeared in a flash of gold light, making me cringe when Lisanna jumped in fear.  
"Lyra, please calm my friend down." I asked seriously, letting the spirit know that this was urgent.  
Lyra took one look at the petrified white-haired girl, her fingers going towards the strings of her harp instantly.

I smiled, confident that the musician knew what to do.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

When the song ended, I noticed that Lisanna's frantic breathing had slowed. The fear in her eyes, which were fixed on the celestial spirit, gradually faded. Her tears hadn't stopped streaming, but her newfound calmness was good enough.  
I called back Lyra, and Lisanna's stare landed on me. She at least looked willing to listen.

"Lisanna, you don't have to be afraid of us. We mean no harm to anyone and everything the media says about us is a lie. We're your friends." I said firmly.  
"Yeah, and if we wanted to kill you, we would have done it already" Gajeel added.  
"Not helping, metal brain" Gray sighed, whacking the back of the dragon slayer's head.

"I… but… why does everyone think you're dangerous?" Lisanna asked, making us all praise the gods in relief that she was starting to believe us. Really, I was glad it was Lisanna who had found out over any other non-mage; she was so accepting.  
"Because we're different" Juvia was the one to speak up.

There was a few seconds of silence before she asked, "How do I know you're not just tricking me by leading me into a false sense of security?"  
Now, that was one I didn't have an answer for. Luckily, our teacher finally took the mature role in the situation.  
"How about everyone demonstrates their magic to prove to you that we aren't able to curse you?" Mr Clive, or Gildarts now I guess, suggested.

Lisanna's expression lit up, along with everyone else's as they realised they would get to show off their magic again.  
"Well I've seen yours and Lucy's, and I saw a bit of Natsu's fire and Erza's magic before I passed out… where is Natsu by the way?" she asked, looking around.

I frowned, looking towards where we had left him. We had all been so caught up with taking care of the Lisanna situation…  
He wasn't there anymore.

He was gone.

* * *

 **A/N: okay, I know I said that I was going to explain stuff in this chapter, but I'm afraid you guys are going to have to wait until next chapter. I'm sorry, please don't hurt me!  
I sort of wanted to end this chapter here because I want to start the next chapter in Natsu's point of view. Plus, I still have exams to study for so there's that.  
If anyone has any suggestions for the song Lyra could have sung then I'd like a review about it! Also, thank you to everyone for making me see that it was a silly idea not to give Juvia magic, honestly your reviews give me life  
Again, sorry for the short chapter but hopefully the next one will make up for it**

 **-usnoozulose**


	10. Chapter 10

**Natsu POV**

 _Food as far as the eye could see. Mountains of food, with extra spicy sauce. There was even a range of flames from different sources for me to try out!  
I was truly in heaven._

 _Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Happy, my cat, flying towards me. He seemed to be way bigger than usual… or had I shrunk?  
I didn't care; there was food to be eaten.  
Strange, shiny food that didn't seem to smell of anything…_

 _"Natsu! Where's Lucy?" the blue cat asked, his voice seeming far away.  
I smiled lazily at him, about to answer, when the mountains of food started turning black. My heart rate increased as the black mass started condensing into a monster._

 _"Natsu!" I heard a voice call behind me. Lucy's voice.  
I turned around, only to see the monster had got to her before I could. What was happening? Why were my movements so slow?  
I noticed bodies of other people on the ground… Gray, Lisanna, Levy, Loke, Erza, Gajeel. Oh god, they looked dead… where they dead? Lucy and I seemed to be the only conscious ones…  
Panic rose in me as I saw deep, bleeding gashes running down Lucy's side. Her face was contorted in pain as the monster approached her again…_

 _No…_

 _"Lucy!" I shouted, letting the fire inside me come out.  
But my body refused to produce any flames. I tried again and again, panicking, the floor moving underneath me frantically as the monster approached my best friend in slow motion…_

 **"** STAY AWAY FROM ME! I KNOW YOU'RE A MAGE!"

I woke with a start, instinctively staying quiet as I took in my surroundings.  
I started to calm down as I realised that it was just another nightmare. But the monster… it was real. That had happened in real life.  
But I had drawn its attention away from Lucy in real life, I remembered with relief.

With my fire.  
Well, shit.  
At least I apologised to her beforehand. Maybe she wouldn't hate me too much.

But hadn't I just been woken up by someone screaming bloody murder about a mage being present?  
Opening my eyes just enough to see through my eyelashes, I saw everyone gathered around a hysterical Lisanna. Everyone except Loke, who also turned out to be a mage, and had the guts to attack the monster before I did.  
My urge to fight him tripled.

Well if he was gone, then the mage they were referring to was me… my guess was that Loke was now going into hiding to prevent himself from being caught.

"I WILL NEVER BE FRIENDS WITH MAGES! THEY DO HORRIBLE THINGS TO PEOPLE!"

Ouch.  
This was my cue to leave, then. It probably wouldn't be safe to go back to where Wendy was.  
Ugh, this was so unfair! Years of dumb luck protecting me from revealing my magic to the wrong people and then this dumb monster had to ruin it all!

With everyone's attention on Lisanna, I took one last look at them and made a quiet exit. It was fun while it lasted, I guess. At least Lucy was still alive.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It didn't take long for me to pack up all my things, get Happy and go. After all, it would only be a matter of time before the Royal Guard would be after me.

Happy, my lone companion, kept throwing me worried looks as I headed towards the forest nearby. I really didn't have it in me to smile and brush off the situation, so he would just have to deal with my moody silence for now. Probably for a long time after today, as well.  
It took every ounce of my self-control to keep walking away from my friends.

I had just reached the edge of the forest when a voice couldn't bear to face, but also secretly really wanted to hear, called out to me.

"Natsu!" she shouted, reminding me of how she had called my name in the nightmare.  
Attempting to shove the images out of my head, I started walking faster, away from her. Why on earth would she be following me, anyway?  
"Natsu Dragneel, you stop this instant!" she demanded. What was she thinking? Didn't she listen to the news? She should be afraid of me!

I found myself unable to keep walking, though.  
Checking that Happy's wings were retracted (I didn't want him getting caught up in the mess), I turned back to face her.  
I should have kept walking. What if the last expression I saw on the face was fear… of me?

Her facial expression was definitely not what I expected.  
She was livid. No fear. None at all. She was in more of a rage than the first time we met, when I laughed at her for getting stuck in that window. What made it worse is that she seemed to be completely unaware of her blood-stained clothes and bandages.  
I was more wary of her in that moment than I had ever been of Erza, and that was saying something. Wait, why am I the one that's afraid here?

I stayed still in a dazed state as she approached me, pulling back her hand.  
Her slap wasn't hard. It was half-assed, barely making a mark on my face. It succeeded in bringing me back to reality, though.  
"YOU WERE LEAVING?" she screamed in my face.

"Luce…" I started panicking when I noticed the tears in her eyes. She was sad…?

"AFTER TELLING ME NOT TO LEAVE, YOU'RE JUST GOING TO GET UP AND GO, JUST LIKE THAT? WITHOUT SAYING ANYTHING?" she balled up her fists, lightly hitting me on the chest.

It dawned on me that she was correct. I hadn't even thought about it like that. Wasn't I just doing the same thing to her and everyone else that my dad had done to me?  
The circumstances were different, though.

"Luce, I'm sorry, but you don't understand. I'm a mage. I can't-"  
"I DON'T GIVE A RAT'S ASS. YOU DON'T JUST DITCH PEOPLE LIKE THAT, IDIOT. NOT AFTER SAVING THEIR LIFE." She interrupted, staring me down.

I felt relief rushing through me. Enough to make me light-headed. Was there a chance I could actually stay…?  
"You're not afraid of me." I confirmed.

Lucy rolled her eyes, smiling as she wiped her tears away.  
"Hmm, I don't know. Can I ask a friend whether or not I'm afraid of magic?" she asked innocently, flashing that coy smile she adopts when she's messing with someone.  
What sort of request was that anyway? I narrowed my eyes, not knowing where this was leading.

I almost took a step back when she reached into her bra.  
Was I being punked? What the hell was going on?  
She eventually took her hand out of her bra, a key grasped tightly in it. What was with her and keys, anyway?  
"Open, gate of Crux!" she shouted, waving her key in mid-air.

This time, I actually did take a step back. Several. The gold flash of light made my instincts go haywire. What the fuck just happened?  
My vision cleared, and I thought I was dreaming again when I saw a giant metal cross with an old man's face carved into it.  
Lucy ignored the frantic questioning look I shot at her, amusement dancing in her eyes.

"Crux, can you tell me if I should be afraid of magic?" Lucy politely asked the piece of metal.  
I jumped when the face on the cross started moving. It morphed into a slightly grumpy sleeping face, drool dripping from its mouth.  
I was dreaming. No, I wasn't. This was real life.

The only way of making something appear from nothing was…  
Magic.

LUCY WAS A MAGE? A thousand lightbulbs went off in my head.  
"Lucy, you-"

"Shhhh!" she stopped me, grinning as she noticed my epiphany. "Crux is thinking, you have to wait and stay quiet!" I could tell she was just about stopping herself from bursting with laughter.  
"But Luce-"  
"no shhhh!" she was giggling now as she covered my mouth. I pouted, debating whether I should lick her hand. Why wouldn't she just let me ask the damn question already?

"Lucy" the cross awoke, speaking in a voice full of wisdom. "There is no reason for you to be afraid of magic. You yourself are a celestial mage and it is illogical to be afraid of yourself. Recent sources stating that mages are able to put curses on people have no citations, and therefore there is not sufficient evidence to suggest they speak the truth. Does that answer your question, Lucy?" the cross finished, bowing.  
"Yes, thank you crux. You were very helpful, as usual. Gate closure!" Lucy called, waving her key in the air again. The cross disappeared, having answered my burning question as well as Lucy's.

Warmth spread throughout me as I realised what this meant. I knew other mages, but nobody who was my age. I would be able to tell Lucy everything now, knowing that she was in the same boat as me. She might even tell me what happened at the train station when we first met…

"That's so awesome." I commented after a few seconds of silence, staring at the place where the cross used to be. Her magic allowed her to bring people out of keys? I didn't even know magic could do that.

 **Lucy POV**

"That's so awesome." His awed smile lit up his face. Good, I never wanted to see him looking all melancholy ever again. It didn't suit him at all.

I blushed at his compliment, not bothering to hide it as I realised how lucky I was to have caught him before he left. Dumb luck, I guess.  
"Your flames are pretty amazing too, you know" I told him.

"You liiiiiiike each other" a voice that wasn't Natsu's drawled behind me.  
I spun around on high alert, cursing the fact that my guard had dropped. My eyes darted around at high speed, not finding the source.  
I heard Natsu snort at my panicked reaction. His hand came from behind me, tucking itself under my chin as it pushed my line of sight upwards.

I don't even know why I was so surprised to see what I did, especially after what I had witnessed today. My eyes widened and I stepped back, accidentally bumping into the amused idiot behind me.  
Happy, his cat, had wings. He was flying.  
Maybe I actually did have a concussion?

"Lucy, this is Happy, who is actually an exceed. He's basically a cat that can use magic." He beamed at me.  
"I can finally talk around the weirdo!" the blue cat sang as he flew circles around us in glee.  
After taking a few moments to get over my initial shock, I couldn't help but break down in hysterical laughter. I must admit, I was glad to know Natsu wasn't some odd cat whisperer. And I finally knew just how he got into my room in the fourth floor! It all made sense now…  
After calming down, I stuck my hand out to Happy for him to shake. Oddly enough, the action didn't seem weird to me, considering it was to a cat.  
"Glad to finally meet you, Happy." I said.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

After explaining the fact that nearly everyone else in the detention was a mage, our conversation drifted towards his magic.  
"So you used magic to set that trash can alight?" I asked Natsu as we walked back to the classroom.  
"Yep!" he grinned. The idiot actually looked proud of himself.

"Wait… what about the fire on Monday? Was that you too?" the thought had only occurred to me now.  
"Yeah, that was my bad. I was running track and was way ahead of the others when the pollen started messing with my nose. I sneezed and uh… yeah."  
I laughed. "You sneeze fire?"  
"Mhmm. Couldn't eat it in time either because people were starting to catch up and they would have seen." He replied nonchalantly.

I stopped walking completely. "YOU EAT FIRE?" how was this guy even human?  
He stopped walking with me, grinning as he nodded.  
I instantly started looking through my pockets. I was bound to have a lighter in here somewhere… yes!  
Bringing out the lighter, I lit it, challenging the boy to prove his claim.  
I watched in awe as he opened his mouth, drawing the small flame towards it like a magnet. It was weird to see fire touching someone's skin without burning it.  
"And you say I'm the weirdo" I teased, carrying on our walk towards the classroom.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"OI SALAMANDER! WHO RAISED YOU?" was all we were greeted with when we got back to the destructed room. Gajeel really had a way with words, I thought sarcastically.  
"What's it to you?" Natsu retorted. I remembered that this was most likely a tricky topic for him; not the sort of thing he'd want to talk about to a whole crowd of people.

"Tch, never mind" the Iron dragon slayer growled as we joined the circle of people congratulating me on finding Natsu. They also took an immediate liking to Happy after a rather… theatrical introduction on his part.

My train of thought took a wild turn, though. Both Gajeel's and Natsu's parents disappeared, right? Gajeel probably just wanted to know whether Natsu's parent was a dragon…  
Dragons in the books I read all breathed fire…

"Natsu, is your dad a dragon?" I asked, cringing when Natsu, along with everyone else, turned their heads in silence to stare at me.  
"Y-yeah. How…?" he stuttered, his eyes widening.  
I smiled at him, nodding towards Gajeel. "You two have a lot to talk about, then."

A few seconds later, I was sweatdropping at how fast their conversation turned from discussing when their dads disappeared into fighting over whose dragon was stronger.  
Averting my attention away from the two impulsive hot heads, I decided to ask the question that had been plaguing my mind for a while now.  
"Does anyone have any idea what that monster was, then?" I asked.  
"Erza said she knows, but she wanted to wait for everyone to get here so she would only have to explain once." Levy replied.

"And now that you and Natsu have arrived, I will start." Erza continued in a solemn voice. I looked at her, worried. I got the impression this was something she didn't want to talk about, but the resolve on her face was absolute.  
Natsu and Gajeel had stopped their fighting in order to listen, sensing that an important revelation was about to take place.

Erza took a deep breath before starting.  
"This may come as a shock to some of you but I am an escapee from a magic concentration camp. As far as I know, I am the only one who has ever accomplished such a feat; however I refuse to pretend I didn't have help. A lot of people- friends- played a part in getting me out of that place. Many were supposed to escape that day, but I was the only one who did."

There was a chorus of gasps from her audience, but we didn't dare interrupt. I could hear the guilt in her voice; the heartbreaking tone reminding me of Loke's when he was describing his close calls with the concentration camps.

Erza… She was still technically a child, for god's sake! How many other children have witnessed the horror of those concentration camps?  
I couldn't have even guessed she had gone through something so horrible. She was so strong, recalling all of this without shedding a single tear. Her eyes were watery and I felt like hugging her and telling her to let it all out. I needed to allow her to finish her explanation first, though.

"I was in there from a young age and escaped two years ago. I will not give details of the conditions-" she visibly shuddered, "but I will tell you of the work they do there. Magic is harvested, in a way, and used to power weapons. While I was there, the weapons were poor and barely functional; the technology was faulty and underdeveloped. Knowing their plans were failing was the only consolation us mages had…"

Tears were now falling from my face. The reality was terrifying. Did she mean that…

"That monster is a weapon of theirs. A weapon designed specifically to target people who use magic to defend themselves. And it seems that it has now been perfected. Mages will defend themselves, either getting killed or found out and arrested in the process." Erza finished.

There was complete and utter silence as everyone took in the information. I didn't even bother looking at everyone's faces to see how they were taking the news. It was a huge punch in the gut for all of us. We would all be in terrible danger from now on…

"So that's how you knew how to kill it?" Gajeel eventually broke the deafening silence.  
"Yes, I had a chance to observe them when they were testing them out-" she stopped herself, her eyes giving away the fact that she was bringing up bad memories. "Their weak points are their eyes." She continued.

"But… it went straight for Lucy, who wasn't even using magic. Why didn't it attack Loke?" Natsu asked.  
Oh right, he didn't know about Loke yet. I decided that I might as well kill two birds with one stone by calling the lion spirit out. It occurred to me that he may want to ask Erza some questions about who she met in the concentration camp.

"That should answer your question." I said after Natsu had composed himself from the shock of seeing Loke appear out of nowhere.  
"Erza, if you want me to stop asking about it, then please let me know." I approached the scarlet-haired girl, taking her hand. "Can you name the friends you made in the concentration camp?" I asked softly.

What if she knew Loke's old master?

She smiled sadly at me and I returned it, glad that she wasn't taking offense into my prying.  
"They were my dear friends; I do not mind honouring their memories at all." She said, finally allowing a single tear to fall. "There was Sho, Wally, Millianna, Simon, J- Jellal" her voice cracked and I squeezed her hand to comfort her. "And Rob, who was like our father figure" she smiled slightly, about to continue when Loke's breath hitched.

"R-Rob?" he asked, drawing Erza's attention.  
So, my hunch was correct, then. This was the best I could do for the troubled spirit at the moment; hopefully Erza could update him on how Loke's old master was doing.  
I prayed that she would have good news.

"Yes, Rob." She replied; I could see her connecting the dots in her head. "Were you one of the spirits he was always on about?" she asked, her eyes widening.  
Loke didn't even bother to answer her as he started bombarding her with a series of questions regarding his old master's wellbeing.

Erza waited for him to finish before smiling kindly and replying, "He was still going strong the last time I saw him. He would be glad to know you were faring well also."  
Loke was shedding happy tears at this point, making me beam. The next best thing to getting Rob out of that place would be the knowledge that he was still alive and kicking.

Erza's expression, however, turned dark before she continued. "I'm afraid that I have not had contact with him for two years, however, so I cannot give a recent update. I don't know if he's still alive… if any of my friends are still alive…" she whispered. "I have visited their families in secrecy and not received any other news." Her voice was small as she looked down, her eyes watering again.

"You would know" we jumped when we heard Gray's voice suddenly entering the conversation.  
"What does Gray mean?" Juvia asked him. I had almost forgotten about everyone else in the room…  
"I mean, the families would know if someone in the camp died. If they haven't heard anything, they're still alive." Gray's voice was colder than his magic.  
"And you know this because..?" Natsu asked. There was no hint of a challenge in his voice, which is the tone he usually used when speaking to Gray. No, Natsu sounded serious. Concerned, even.

Gray's eyes stayed on the floor. He seemed to be having an internal battle with himself, and I was glad when Juvia put a hand on his shoulder to offer him comfort.  
"My mentor, Ur, died in a concentration camp a few years ago. My adoptive siblings and I received her ashes with a letter to break the news." He stated without emotion.

My tears started to fall again as I took in what he was saying. People died. People were murdered in those places. There was barely any consideration for the families, and I couldn't fathom what Gray had gone though at the time.  
Everyone had a backstory, huh.

"Gray…" Juvia whispered.  
The boy just shook his head; a clear sign that he would say no more about it.  
"It happened a long time ago." He said, prompting us to drop the subject.

"So… what now? What do we do?" Levy asked, taking Gray's hint and drawing attention to herself.  
Good question. Our conversation had gone way off topic, but at the back of our minds was the blaring truth that this probably wouldn't be the only attack we would have to deal with.

"You guys train to fight those things, of course." Gildarts was the one to answer, the confidence in his voice triggering something in us all.  
It was almost like he was trying to turn this situation into an adventure.  
This situation could result in lifetime imprisonment or death, and was going to be the most difficult things any of us would ever have to go through.

So why did I feel a small sense of excitement amongst all my other negative emotions?

"Sounds like fun! I'm all fired up!" Natsu shouted, setting himself on fire.  
Despite myself, I felt a smile crawling onto my face. Fighting alongside him definitely sounded fun. The slight smiles on everyone else's face at Natsu's outburst told me they were thinking the same thing.

I guess there was something about facing a life or death situation which really bought people together.

"Right so urm… hospital now?" Gildarts asked, giving me a weird look.  
Oh, right. I was still covered in my own blood. I gave a weak laugh and nodded, suddenly exhausted and feeling the full force of my injuries.

* * *

 **A/N: you may have already guessed but I'm a total sucker for tragic backstories. That's probably why I like anime so much... I mean, does anyone in the entire Fairy Tail cast (apart from Asuka) actually have a mother who's alive? So tragic, if you ask me.**

 **VIPluvFT: waaaay ahead of you. sort of. They're gonna have to form some sort of club in order to train, right?**

 **Guest: I do plan on future Nalu and Gajevy and some other ships but I definitely want to establish stronger friendships first. If it's any consolation, I won't drag it out as much as Hiro Mashima does! Stay tuned, the ships will have their moments**

 **Thank you to all my reviewers, followers and favouriters!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	11. Chapter 11

"That's kinda dumb, Gildarts" Natsu deadpanned.

"What? How else am I going to get all you kids together every week to train? And that's Mr Clive to you in school, brat" the teacher grumbled, his eye twitching in annoyance.

"But if you give us detention every Saturday, won't it look bad on our personal records?" Looks like I had to be the voice of reason when communicating with these fools.

The Monday after our ridiculously eventful Saturday detention, the students in Magnolia college were bursting with blatantly exaggerated stories of what happened to them when the local earthquake struck.  
In everyone else's opinion, it was rather bizarre that the only group of students who had no exciting stories were the ones who were stuck in school when the disaster happened. After all, the school seemed to be the worst hit place.

I was in the middle of a group of people pestering me on how I got my injuries when Guildarts called me, Loke and Natsu aside to talk.

"That's where my daughter comes in" Gildarts beamed, suddenly off in his own world.

It took Loke a few seconds of waving his hand in front of the teacher's face before he came back into reality.  
"What about your daughter?" The spirit asked.  
Gildarts was about to answer when his expression suddenly turned dark and he was surrounded by a sinister aura.  
I momentarily started to panic, thinking that only the presence of something truly evil could cause that reaction.

"If you try anything with my daughter, you'll regret it" he growled at Loke, no doubt having picked up on the spirit's flirtatious attitude.  
I giggled at the stereotypical overprotectiveness whilst Loke choked out a pathetic "Aye sir!", before Gildarts decided to answer the Lion spirit's question.

"She… has a knack for computers and fortune telling" he winked when he said the word 'knack'. We didn't dare talk about our magic in obvious terms where eavesdroppers may hear it.  
"She's hacked into the school's network and put you all down for Saturday detention every week, but she developed a virus that deletes any record of the detention after it's been served." He continued proudly.

"And she'll be training with us too?" I asked, warming up tremendously to the idea.  
"Yep, she's the same age as you guys but uhh… education isn't her thing so she dropped out of school." He said, rubbing the back of his head. "Plus, there was no way I was going to leave my little Cana undefended when those ravens are on the loose!" he cried.

Another thing; we had named the monsters 'Ravens' for now. It represented the black colour of the beasts, and it was a lot more practical and discrete than shouting about monsters all the time.

We all agreed to the plan, setting ourselves with the task of telling the other members of our little detention group.  
Lisanna, even without magic, decided to be a part of it so she could help in any way she could. Erza even offered to teach her martial arts to which Lisanna graciously accepted. Seeing her level of acceptance with minimal persuasion really gave me hope for the future.  
Maybe, one day, mages would no longer have to live in fear?

"-uuuuucy, you've got a weird smile on your face." Natsu whined in my ear.  
I jumped, refocusing my eyes on the food in front of me. I thanked the gods that I was zoning out during lunch time rather than a lesson.  
"Meh, I was just thinking about something" I smiled to myself.

There was a comfortable silence between us as we both ate our lunches, but I was distracted by the slight frown on Natsu's face. Since when did Natsu have an expression other than bliss when he ate?

"Something wrong?" I asked  
He looked at me, surprised. What, he thought he could mope without me noticing it?

"It's just… there's this girl back at the place where I grew up." He muttered.  
"And that has you all frowny because…?"  
"She's a m-" he stopped himself, thankfully, "she's like us." he replied.

I felt irritated. Why? No clue.  
Okay, maybe I had a clue, but I refused to believe I would be that petty.  
Jealousy?  
Did I even have a right to be feeling like that?  
Maybe it was the fact that she knew Natsu's secret way before he even met me.

Maybe it was the fact that the way he spoke about her made it blatantly obvious that he cared about her very much. Like she was family. Or… a girlfriend.  
Which would explain why he didn't seem to be at all interested in any of the girls as college.

No, I refused to be jealous. Whatever his relationship with this girl, it wouldn't get in the way of the friendship between Natsu and I.  
Would it?

I shook away my thoughts, cursing myself for even thinking them in the first place.  
"So you're worried that a raven will target her, huh?" I asked.  
He winced at my words, and I mentally hit myself for not phrasing it better.  
"Yeah" was all he said, his forehead creasing in worry.

Well, the answer to how to solve this was obvious to me. It was kind of unlike Natsu to not be a man of action, but I guessed he would need some prompting.  
"So you're just going to sit there and do nothing?" I asked, turning back to my food.

I saw his eyes widening in my peripheral vision, so I carried on.  
"Because the Natsu I encountered last Saturday would have lit himself on fire, bought a lifetime supply of fish, and bribed Happy into flying him to this girl straight away." I whispered, smirking.

Before I knew it, Natsu was no longer sitting next to me.  
I looked up to see that he was standing on top of the freaking table.  
"YOSH! LET'S GO GET WENDY!" he shouted, ignoring the exasperated comments from other students.

Instead of moving away and pretending I didn't know the guy, (which I was very tempted to do) I yanked him back down from the table, muttering about how he should shout louder because some aliens in outer space probably couldn't hear him.  
Honestly, I deserved an award for what I had to put up with.

"I'm sure Gildarts wouldn't mind another student, right Luce?" he asked quietly after I had gotten over my second hand embarrassment.  
I smiled at him and nodded, wondering against my will whether this Wendy girl was closer to Natsu than I was.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

I had no work on Wednesday afternoon, so Natsu asked me to accompany him on a trip to see or collect Wendy, depending on how she reacted to our news about the ravens. Not that the overprotective dragon slayer was going to allow her to stay there, of course.

We just about managed to get on the train before the doors shut.  
"At least I didn't hit the closed doors again" I muttered to myself, panting with exhaustion. Working on my cardio was still on my to-do list.  
Ignoring Natsu's stifled laughter behind me, we went inside an empty carriage, shutting the door behind us.

"Those travel sickness tablets had better work. Taking time to buy them almost made us miss the train!" The pink haired boy mused, opening Happy's bag to let him roam free.  
"I never thought you'd be sad about missing a train, Natsu." The cat drawled, resting himself on his owner's lap.

The train had been moving for about 5 minutes, in which time I caught my breath and got out a book to read, when Natsu suddenly decided it was a good time to invade my personal space.  
"LUCE, THESE TABLETS ARE AMAZING! ARE THEY MAGIC? I DON'T FEEL SICK AT ALL!" he shouted, suffocating me with what he might call a hug. Attempted murder is what I called it.

"I- can't- breathe-" I wheezed out, attempting to pry him off me.  
"Oh right, sorry Luce" he grinned, letting go of me.  
The idiot had just tried to kill me, but I couldn't help smiling back. His ways of showing gratitude were definitely interesting.

"So where are we going exactly?" I asked, putting my book down.  
"A care home for children. Someone brought me there when I was found wandering the forest looking for my dad." He replied solemnly.  
"Did they think it was odd that you were looking for a dragon?" I asked, my eyes watering slightly when I pictured a mini Natsu looking all lost and sad.

"Igneel told me that other humans didn't react kindly to magic, so I knew not to say anything" He was now looking out of the window. I knew that talking about his father was painful, but at the same time I was glad that he was able to.

"Wendy, though-" He continued, "her dragon mother didn't have time to talk to her about that because she was too young. I ended up having to help her hide it; it was really lucky that I was the only one who found out." He smiled.  
"She's a dragon slayer as well?" I asked, my eyes widening. How many of them were there?  
"Yeah, I guess you could say we're kind of like siblings."

Siblings. The word repeated over and over my head, and I felt a huge weight leaving me as it did. A weight I hadn't even been aware of until now. Why was I so relieved that that was the relationship between Natsu and Wendy?

"She has her own exceed as well!" Happy added, the hearts in his eyes distracting me from the unanswered questions in my head.  
"Awww does Happy liiiiiiiike Wendy's exceed?" I teased, using his annoying way of drawing out words against him.  
"Not as much as Lucy liiiiiiiikes Natsu" Happy retorted, A devious glint replacing the hearts in his eyes.

Well, that backfired.  
"Stupid cat, don't say things like that!" I spluttered, attempting to swat him in mid-air as he flew around the carriage.

"Ticket inspection! Get out your tickets!" the door suddenly slammed open.  
It was that inspector, Macao, from last time.  
Happy was still flying around the carriage.  
Macao was looking right at him.  
In a panic, I shot a look at Natsu to see that he was going to do about this.

I almost fainted in disbelief when I saw a welcoming smile on his face, directed at Macao.  
"The blonde's a mage then?" asked the ticket inspector after closing the door behind him.

It took me a few seconds longer than usual to work out how he had deducted that from seeing only the cat using magic. Happy only used his magic in front of mages, with Lisanna as an exception.  
So, Macao was a mage.  
I let out a sigh of relief.

Natsu nodded in reply to the man, beaming at him.  
"And let me guess, no tickets today?" the inspector asked.  
I let out a gasp of realisation whilst Natsu continued nodding his head. How on earth had I forgotten to buy a ticket?

"Off the train." Macao ordered sternly.  
"We'll trade you important information for a free pass." Natsu grinned. Was he talking about the ravens? He planned this, didn't he?  
"How important?"

At this question, the grin dropped from Natsu's face. I found myself suddenly feeling awkward and rather grave.  
In that moment, I realised that breaking this sort of news to fellow mages would be no walk in the park. I didn't want to tell anyone that they were in huge danger. I didn't want to see the fear in their eyes when they realised just how much closer they were to being found out.  
But in the end, it was necessary.

Macao had the reaction I expected when we told him about what had happened to us last Saturday, and the implications of it. There was a hint of doubt in his eyes, so I made sure to get rid of it by lifting up my shirt to show him the still healing wounds on my side. He would have to take this very seriously if he wanted to survive.  
"Their weakness is their eyes." Natsu finished.

Needless to say, Macao let us have a free pass for the rest of the ride. The atmosphere as he left was tense.  
"That was more difficult than I expected." I commented quietly, staring at the door after Macao shut it behind him.  
"Yeah, well, he has a kid to look after so he would take it badly." Natsu replied.

The driver's voice then echoed through the sound system, announcing the next stop.  
I flinched when I heard the name of the next town.  
My home town.  
What if they were still searching for me there?

All thoughts of Macao and his kid left my head as I looked for a spot in the carriage where nobody would be able to see me from the outside.

 **Natsu POV**

"Luce?" I questioned. Her entire body had frozen when the driver's voice announced we were reaching the next town.  
Ignoring me, she walked towards the window and sat underneath it, hugging her legs.

I shared a confused look with Happy, who returned it, shrugging.  
"Luuushy what's wrong?" The cat asked worriedly, flying directly into her unfocused line of vision.  
I could see both fear and unshed tears in her eyes as they landed on Happy.  
"It's my hometown." She whispered. "Remember? It's the place I-"

She cut herself off as realisation dawned on my face.  
"The place you ran away from." I finished for her.  
She nodded and I sat down on the seat next to the window, watching her as she sat with her back to the wall, hiding from whatever may be outside.

I really didn't like seeing her like this. Why was this so difficult for me, when she was the only person who had an excuse to feel like shit?  
The fact that she was sad made me want to beat up whoever made her feel like that. She sure as hell didn't deserve it.  
Over the last few weeks, I noticed that when Lucy wasn't reacting hilariously to someone teasing her, she was doing something to make someone else feel better.

Hell, the weirdo even told us all to run when she was staring death in the face.  
She ignored her own injuries after getting battered by that raven just so that she could call my sorry ass back to the classroom.  
And then I found out that she saved Loke's life, even though he aggravated her immensely on the first day.

Shaking my head to get rid of the nightmarish images of the raven approaching her broken body, I reached down to hold her hand. I knew she had a thing about personal space, but the fact that she squeezed my hand told me that she was okay with it.

"What were you running away from that day?" I asked, knowing she would answer me now. There was no doubt in my mind that it had something to do with her being a mage.  
"The royal guard. My dad caught me using magic."

Thank fuck I pulled her into the train.  
And if I ever met her father… I would be glad to give him a piece of my own mind. What sort of father willingly gives his own daughter to a concentration camp?

The train eventually stopped and I glanced outside to see the town where Lucy used to live.

I felt my heart stop when I saw her outside.  
A black and white drawing of her. The drawing version of Lucy had different eyes though, and it was missing the smile that I had come to enjoy seeing on her face.  
Nevertheless, it was her. And she was on a wanted sign.

"Are there many guards?" Lucy asked timidly, unable to see what I could.  
I shook my head, trying to keep my expression neutral. I should tell her, right? But wouldn't that just freak her out?  
I was sure as hell freaking out.

"Just… don't go back there again, okay Luce?" was all I managed to get out as the train started up again.

She either understood or just didn't want to know what made me say that.  
We stayed silent, holding hands for the rest of the journey.

* * *

 **A/N: my exams are finished! In other news, updates might still be slow due to me going on holiday. I'll let you guys know when not to expect updates!**

 **Okay, so it's filler but I'm working on major Nalu development at the moment. It's difficult because they're both dense as fuck and I want to keep them in character, but I hope I'm doing it justice.**  
 **I also dislike the idea of girls competing with each other for male attention, so I didn't want Lucy to go too far down that road, yaknow?**

 **redeyedshadowslayer - oh right, thanks for pointing that out, I'm working on getting a better flow in my writing so thanks for the advice and compliments!**

 **fairygirl1101 - we never see Romeo's mother though, nor do we hear anything about her. I wonder if that's going to become relevant at any time in the manga?**

 **a big thanks to my other reviewers as well, you guys are gr8**

 **-usnoozulose**


	12. Chapter 12

_**A/N: Italics mean a flashback, just to avoid confusion.**_

 **WENDY POV**

I know that Natsu told me never to reveal my magic to anyone. I'd heard enough about all the lies the media spouts about us. And I definitely did not want to end up in a concentration camp.

But I would not sit by, doing nothing when the other care home children were being attacked.

To think, only a minute ago I was sitting down peacefully, allowing some of the younger kids to braid my hair. I was wondering where Carla was and stood up to look for her when-

I saw fire. A lot of fire outside the window. My first thought was of Natsu, but under further inspection I realised that this definitely wasn't his fire. It was unnatural, spreading exponentially and spewing out of what looked like a large ball of flames, about the size of a small car.

The large ball of flames had eyes though; red eyes, which where dodging around, no doubt looking for another thing to burn.  
Suddenly, the thing spread its wings and started heading straight towards the care home at a worrying speed.

Not stopping to question what I was actually seeing, I pushed down the panic inside me and picked up a younger child, telling the others to follow me. The rising volume of screaming outside made me run faster, rushing down the stairs to lead the children into the basement.

I was tempted to stay with them in the safety of the small, dark underground room, but the reality of the situation dawned on me as I smelt an overwhelming aroma of burning from above.  
This thing was hurting people, wasn't it? Oh god, it was going to kill people…

Was this a time to worry about the complications of being a mage?  
No. I would not stand by while this was happening, not when Grandine had taught me my magic in order to help people. I'm sure Natsu would have done the same.

Before I knew it, I was facing the monster; closer up I realised it resembled a phoenix. It had smashed through the wall of the place I spent the majority of my life in, and was firing what seemed like random attacks everywhere. Like its aim was simply to cause as much destruction as possible, no matter who got hurt in the process.

No time to think about how scared you are now, I thought to myself.  
The phoenix opened its mouth, about to shoot flames at a small group of huddled children who hadn't made it to the basement.  
With one last goodbye to my freedom, I summoned my wind magic and directed it towards the blast of fire, effectively making the phoenix miss its target.

The other children gawked at me, but the majority of my attention was on the Phoenix's eyes. They had focused on me instantly, before I even shot the attack.  
Before I knew it, I was up in the air, a trail of fire replacing the exact spot I stood a millisecond ago.

The small hands gripping my back felt familiar as I was flown outside, away from the monster.  
"Carla?" I asked  
"Senseless girl, using your magic in front of everybody. You could have been hurt!" the exceed scolded; her protective tone making me smile albeit the danger we were in.

My smile was short lived though, as I felt a painful burning sensation along my back.  
Carla screamed out, and I reached behind my back to pull her into my arms as we fell. Luckily, we weren't that high up, so my landing wasn't too hard.

My heart, however, was about to burst open with terror.  
I sensed the phoenix heading straight towards us, and my retaliation was purely adrenaline-fuelled. Spinning around to face my attacker once more, I attempted to gather all my magic into my next move. I'd never even tried this, but desperate times call for desperate measures, right?

"Wind shield!" I cried, forming a dome of protection around Carla and I.  
The phoenix crashed into my shield, its fire being blown away as it screeched in frustration. I would have been elated that it was working, if I didn't feel the shield weakening from every attempt the phoenix made to get to me.

The shield wasn't the only thing that was weakening, I realised as I felt my magic draining out of me. I'd never had to use this much. My shield – it was falling.  
Tears left my eyes as I realised that neither me nor Carla, who was unconscious, would survive this. This monster was just too strong.

"WENDY!" I heard a familiar voice call me. Of course, in my exhausted state, I would hear voices, wouldn't I? There was no way Natsu could possibly be here. He was far away in Magnolia…

"WENDY!" it called again, this time closer.  
I couldn't look towards the direction it was coming from. All I could do was stare into the red eyes of the monster as it knocked down the last of my defences.

I couldn't hold on any longer. Grabbing Carla into a tight hug, I drained the last of my magic and prepared for the fiery inferno that was sure to follow.

A few seconds after I collapsed, still barely conscious, I opened my eyes in confusion. Where was the fire? Had the phoenix stopped?  
No… it was still there, its dead eyes still targeting me, but its fire wasn't reaching its prey. It almost looked like it was stuck, trying to move whilst its flames were being drawn elsewhere… Like its flames were being eaten…

"Natsu" I mumbled weakly when my eyes finally confirmed my suspicion. My surrogate brother was currently redirecting all of the phoenix's fire towards himself, but I could tell he was already struggling with the sheer amount of flames present.  
How was he here?  
The look in his eyes was one I had never seen before; they almost looked like they were on fire themselves. I'm sure that if the phoenix wasn't already on fire, then it would have been from the intensity of Natsu's glare.

Eventually the phoenix gave up and darted away from me, appearing metres away from Natsu in the blink of an eye.

I panicked when Natsu stood his ground, not knowing just how strong his immunity to fire was. My panic turned into amazement, though, as he jumped straight into the flame that was the phoenix's body, confronting it head-on.  
Happy, probably after deciding that this was a fight he couldn't share with Natsu due to his own flammability, started flying towards Carla and I, tears in his eyes.

I could barely keep my eyes open as I watched the fight unfold; Natsu was throwing an array of different attacks at the monster, only for it to recover and hit him right back, throwing him further and further away each time. He kept getting up, though. Nothing would change that about Natsu.  
He was holding strong, but there was no denying that he was wearing himself out.

No, Natsu shouldn't be here. What if this thing kills him too? However strong he was, he couldn't go up against something like that…  
Wait, was someone else approaching the fight scene?

My eyes widened as I confirmed that a blonde girl was marching up to the Phoenix, stomping as if she was in a bad mood. It seemed a little inappropriate; she looked as if she was about to tell someone off rather than walking straight into something that would kill her.

Oh god, she needed to get away. Now. What on earth was she thinking?

 **LUCY POV**

That damn idiot had a missing gear in his flame infested brain if he thought I was going to stand there and let him get beaten up.

 _"Lucy, please stay back and let me deal with this." The pleading tone in his voice and the aggressive look in his eyes jolted something within me. I looked at the scene not far away and could see the girl had little time before her defences broke. Natsu looked as if he was going to wait for my reply before fully focusing on saving his little sister, so who was I to delay that?  
"Okay." I replied immediately, watching him sprint away, calling for the blue haired girl who in that moment, I couldn't help admiring for her strength against that monster._

'Stay back' my ass.  
I saw the red eyes on that thing, and instantly knew how I was going to kill it. Natsu seemed focused on using brute force, which was getting less and less effective, so I assumed he hadn't made the connection yet.  
That thing was another monster, like the Raven we encountered last Saturday.

Storming up to the beast, I got within a fair distance, hoping Natsu would be enough to distract it, and pulled out a key.  
"Open, gate of Sagittarius!" I called.  
Skipping our usual greeting, I pointed my newly appeared horse spirit towards the phoenix not far away.

"Do you think you could hit that monster in the eye from here?" I asked.  
"Is that doubt I hear, moshi moshi?" the archer smiled, already getting his arrows in place.  
I smiled back, content with my absolute trust in my spirits, before I set my eyes on the fight once more.

Natsu was getting up after being struck down yet again, and I wondered briefly if he was indestructible. Seriously, a normal human being would have been unconscious after all the hits he had taken.  
The phoenix had been knocked further away from his opponent too; it was now closer to me.  
Oh well, all the more chance of Sagittarius getting a clean shot, I guess.

My arrogance faded, though, as the monster's eyes moved away from Natsu and locked with mine. Well, shit. Better make this quick, then.  
"SAGITTARIUS, NOW!" I shouted over the howl of the phoenix as it lunged towards us.

My spirit friend did not falter as he shot a single arrow straight into the monster's eye. With a metallic crunch, the arrow dove itself into the head of the phoenix, earning a high pitched screech from it.  
But my congratulations for my spirit's aim died in my throat as I realised that the dead body of the monster was still heading towards us at a startling speed, albeit not being boosted by its wings.  
I couldn't move. What's the phrase they use? Caught like a rabbit in headlights, I think. I understood that saying now. My legs would not listen to my brain frantically screaming at them to get the fuck away from that thing.

What sort of failed evolutionary ploy was this?

But instead of being obliterated by the falling debris, I found myself being pushed roughly to the side, landing on the thing that had just barrelled into me.

My heart pounded rapidly as I realised that I was still alive. Still alive. Repeating that phrase over and over again helped me to calm down, and I was able to breathe properly again after a few seconds. I felt Sagittarius' gate close just before the monster hit, so I sighed with relief knowing that nobody had suffered much damage.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Natsu's voice demanded coldly from beneath me.  
Beneath me? Which meant that the warm surface I had landed on was…  
"Natsu!" I exclaimed, scrambling to get off him, trying not to blush at how intimate our position had been for a few seconds there. Oh my god, he had taken the brunt of the fall. He had also taken so many hits…

"Are you okay? Can you move?" I asked, looking over his body for any broken bones. I moved my hand to check one of his arms which looked particularly bloody when his hand snapped up, grabbing my wrist.  
I looked at him, confused, and was met with an angry glare.

"Answer me. What. The. Fuck. Were you thinking?" he spat with a venom in his voice that I had never heard before.  
I felt my breath catch in my throat as I took in this new side of Natsu; I couldn't help but be slightly scared of him in that moment.  
My reply? Well, quite frankly, I was shaken. I opened my mouth but nothing came out. Why was he like this all of a sudden?

"Natsu?" a small, timid voice called from far away.  
Thanking the gods for the distraction, I turned towards the source of the voice.

Instantly snapping out of his anger, the boy stood up, limping slightly towards the young girl. Without a second thought, I put my arm around his waist to support him, feeling slightly relieved when he didn't push me away. He may be irrationally angry at me now for whatever reason, but we were still friends.  
Right?

When we eventually reached Wendy, who couldn't have been older than 12, I let Natsu go so that the surrogate siblings could reunite with a hug.  
To the side of them, I noticed Happy turning over a groaning white cat who looked slightly charred and shaken but otherwise not too seriously hurt. The blue cat kept offering her fish because it would make her feel better, to which she turned down. Oh right, Wendy had an exceed too, didn't she?

After a few minutes of whispered encouragements such as "it's okay now" and "you're safe", we had all managed to calm down from the whole ordeal. Wendy apologised to Carla for something about her burns and her magic being depleted, and the exceed responded with the most loving scolding I have ever heard. And I never thought I'd put 'loving' and 'scolding' in a sentence next to each other, yet there was no other way to describe it.

"Natsu, is this a friend of yours?" The blue-haired girl asked, breaking away from the hug and smiling cutely at me, instantly making my heart melt.  
"Yeah, Lucy goes to Magnolia college. Luce, this is Wendy." He said, turning towards me with a grin. What, so he wasn't angry anymore?

"I guessed. Nice to meet you Wendy, you were really brave today." I praised her, shaking her hand.  
"Nice to meet you too! What sort of magic do you use, by the way? I've never seen someone bring a being out of nowhere before." The girl gushed, curiosity in her eyes.

"I'm a celestial mage, so I'm able to use keys to bring spirits out of the spirit world. You're actually responding quite well, the first time Natsu saw my magic he looked like he was about to choke-" I cut myself off after glancing at Natsu, expecting his to be smiling at the memory.  
Instead, he was looking away from us, brooding over god knows what. Seriously, what was up with him? Had the fight caused him too much stress or something?

"What are you guys doing here anyway?" Wendy asked after a long silence.  
"We'll explain on the train back to Magnolia. For now, we need to get out of here as soon as possible." Natsu answered shortly, holding out a hand to help Wendy up.

"What, I'm leaving? And erm…" The girl paused, looking at her shoes. "Some of the kids saw my magic…"  
I heard Natsu take an unsteady breath after hearing this news. The place had been deserted for a long time, but Wendy probably encountered the monster nearer to her care home. And chances are, there would be recent pictures of her…

My worried trail of thought was interrupted when both Wendy and Natsu's heads whipped to the side at the same time. Looking in the direction they were so focused on, I saw a small group of children slowly approaching us, looking extremely freaked out but otherwise determined. Did the dragon slayers have enhanced hearing or something? I wouldn't have noticed them at all.

Us mages stayed rooted to the ground, unsure of how to react. If the approaching party had bad intentions, they wouldn't be wearing those expressions, right?  
"Wendy?" one of them asked, stopping a few metres away.  
"Yes?" the girl replied, standing her ground but evidently shaking.

"You saved us." another one of the children stated in confusion.  
Wendy simply stayed quiet.  
"But you're a mage." The child continued.

"Yes I am." Wendy replied, her voice wobbling, triggering both me and Natsu to put our hands on her shoulders in support. We would be here for her if there was any trouble. It was weird; I'd only known the girl for a few minutes and I already felt a huge need to protect her.

"Are… are we cursed?" the child who was hiding behind the rest poked his head out, talking in a small voice.

It was Lisanna all over again, but then again it was different this time. These children seemed sort of on the same level Lisanna was after I had called out my spirit. Maybe they were already starting to question whether they should believe what the media says about us?

"No, I would never curse anyone. I use wind magic to alter wind currents and heal and-"  
"All this curse stuff is bullshi-take mushrooms" Natsu interrupted Wendy, stopping himself from swearing in front of the kids at the last second. "This is Wendy we're talking about; she wouldn't hurt a fly." He continued.

One little girl in the group looked particularly deep in thought before speaking, "so when you kissed my scraped knee yesterday to make it better, you actually used magic to heal it? Because the scrape's gone now." She smiled.

Wendy simply nodded again; she was extremely humble about her good deeds, I noticed.

Healing. Without sounding too poetic, it really was a beautiful magic to have. It was enough to convince these children – mere impressionable children who had been brainwashed – that maybe they shouldn't listen to what everyone said about mages.

I watched with an easy smile on my face as the group of children closed the space between us step by step as they became more convinced of Wendy's innocence. A few minutes of explaining was all it took to hear the words we thought were too good to be true.  
"We'll keep your secret." The children all agreed.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It took some convincing for Wendy to leave the care home, but she had to agree in the end. What can I say? Overprotective Natsu is overprotective.

Speaking of Natsu… he hadn't gotten out of his funk for the entire train ride. I thought the miracle of sickness tablets would have perked him up again, but he barely even acknowledged their abilities this time.  
I could tell he was trying to put a smile on for Wendy, but it was difficult to do after explaining the reality of the situation to her, including the ravens and what happened to us last Saturday. Erza hadn't told us there were monsters other than the ravens, so we were terrified of the possible implications of it. Just how many of them were there?

Natsu, though, seemed to be really pissed off at me. I hadn't forgotten his outburst after he had pushed me out of the way of the phoenix. What was there to be angry about? We took care of it and were still alive. Wasn't that good enough for him?  
Was it because I killed it, and he wanted the glory or something? No, Natsu wasn't that petty.

Whatever it was, I just wanted the dumbass to tell me already. He couldn't dodge my questions forever.

* * *

 **A/N: Ahh, the joys of writing dense characters.  
I'm afraid that this might be the last update for about two weeks because I'm going on holiday and I'll be really busy leading up to the days before that. I might update in the next 2 or 3 days but I wouldn't count on it (sorry!)**

 **And also, shiitake mushrooms are a thing. Very useful for saying a swear word without the repercussions.**

 **Sabrina-luna-potter: I haven't actually thought of a way to bring Elfman or Romeo into the story other than brief references to them, but you can assume Romeo's a mage since Macao is. As for Elfman and Mira, you can assume they aren't mages since Lisanna isn't one.**

 **Digi-fancatt: I'll see if I'll be able to fit Romeo in somewhere, but as far as I've planned, he won't be joining the club thing. That may change though, who knows**

 **Thank you to all my supporters again, it means a lot!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	13. Chapter 13

I really did appreciate the fact that I had a job, but it was difficult to support myself on a part-time salary. I was able to afford the college dormitory rent and food costs, but I barely had anything left after that.

It was always difficult passing shop windows and saying tearful goodbyes to the cute items of clothing I could never afford. Oddly enough though, I was starting to enjoy these challenges in life. Something I'd never got when I was living with my dad was independence, and I had no idea just how much I craved it.

Speaking of money issues, this predicament also meant that I couldn't afford text books, so I decided to venture into the library on Friday after school to see if I could borrow them instead.

I couldn't keep the awe off my face as I glanced around the library. No wonder Levy ditched me so often to go here…  
Trying not to look too much at the 'Novels' section, knowing I would lose all self-control and binge-read them if I got too close, I searched for the text books I needed.

"I told you, I don't need your help, Gajeel!" I heard levy stage-whispering indignantly behind the shelf of physics exam guides I was inspecting.  
Finding a small gap in the books, I peeked through to see Gajeel sitting at a desk, watching Levy with an amused expression as she tried to reach a book on a top shelf.

"C'mon shrimp, unless you magically grow several inches in the next few minutes, you're going to have to _politely_ ask me for help" Gajeel's eyes were gleaming as he teased the petite girl.  
"You come in here every day just to annoy me, so no, I don't want any favours from you." Levy huffed, standing back to study the task in front of her.

So that's where Gajeel was disappearing off to in his free time, huh? I found myself grinning at the idea of the hardened rebellious teenager being fond of my small friend.

I watched as Levy started climbing the shelves, not noticing that Gajeel was holding up the large piece of furniture to prevent it from falling and crushing her. Remembering that Gajeel was a dragon slayer who could probably hear my presence or something, I turned away to continue my text book search, leaving the couple alone to indirectly flirt some more.

Which reminded me; I needed to ask Wendy about the whole enhanced senses thing. She was bunking with me for now as we enrolled her in the local high school, **(A/N: high school in Britain starts at the age of 11)** and I couldn't ask Natsu about it because he was still angry with me.

He refused to look me in the eye this morning during registration, and his answers to my questions when he actually gave them were short.  
It hurt, a lot. I didn't even know what I did wrong.  
When did I even become so dependent on seeing his smile every day?

I was really worried about him too, but I had no idea how to bring up the fact that he looked like he hadn't been sleeping.  
Why won't he just speak to me? I thought we were friends?

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Walking into Saturday detention with Loke and Wendy, we were greeted with a bizarre sight. Gildarts was hugging a thoroughly pissed off teenager, gushing about how she was a princess whilst she threw every curse in the English dictionary at him.

"Is that his daughter?" Loke asked as we watched the scene in front of us, not knowing whether to laugh or not.

The realisation that this provocatively dressed brunette was the innocent 'princess' Gildarts was always gushing about tipped me over the edge of laughter. The way she had been described, I thought she would be a total daddy's girl who wore dresses and had pigtails, despite her age.  
I decided that I liked this surprise – she was definitely an… interesting person.

"Hey you're Lucy, right?" The girl interrupted me from my laughter, finally having been freed from her father's grip.  
"Yeah, and I'm assuming you're Cana" I replied, smiling, holding out my hand for her to shake. "Did Gildarts tell you about us then?"

"Nah, I just visited you when you were asleep in the hospital after fighting the raven." She grinned, taking my hand.  
I felt slightly touched that she had taken the time to visit me even though she didn't know me, and was about to thank her. That was, until she pulled me closer to her in order to grope my chest.

"Wow! They look even bigger when you're not lying down!" she yelled, oblivious to my spluttering about personal space.  
Thankfully, the teacher pulled his daughter away from me, reminding us that we should start introductions now.

"Sorry Lucy, I promise to ask consent before grabbing your great tits again!" Cana snickered at my horrified expression.  
"As if you'll get permission" I grumbled, unable to make my mind up whether I could see myself being friends with this girl.

Okay, so a small part of me was flattered at her compliment. I was allowed to feel confident about my feminine charms, right?

"So who is this then?" Levy appeared next to me, gesturing towards Wendy. I realised that I hadn't even noticed that nearly everyone else in the detention group was present.  
"This is Wendy, Natsu's sort-of little sister. She's a dragon slayer like you, Gajeel." I decided to speak for Wendy since she seemed the type who would be shy in this sort of situation.

As I expected, Gajeel instantly started questioning the small girl about her dragon parent. What I didn't expect, however, was Wendy's immediate enthusiasm to talk to the intimidating piece of scrap metal. I mean, no offense to Gajeel, (okay, maybe a little offense) but his punk image really doesn't give off the most friendly aura at first.  
And here was the timid Wendy, completely unaffected by it.

Maybe she could somehow sense the good in people? Or the fact that they had something in common put her at ease? Or did Levy's close proximity to Gajeel make him seem more approachable? I smiled at the thought. I should totally get those two together.

"Where's flame head anyway?" Gray asked loudly, looking everywhere except the area Juvia was in. Avoiding her blatant staring, huh?  
"He's the only one who's not here yet" Lisanna added.

"He told me he has important news as well. Why isn't that brat on time?" Gildarts moaned.

I sighed loudly. He was avoiding me here, too?

 **WENDY POV**

"So your dragon disappeared too, huh squirt?" Gajeel asked with an undertone of empathy.  
"I'm so sorry wendy, you must have been so young as well." The kind girl – Levy – said to me after I nodded. She reminded me of Lucy and I found myself smiling at her despite the topic of conversation.  
Gajeel then ruffled my hair, reminding me of Natsu a bit, and I decided in that moment that I was very comfortable around these people.

Back at the care home, especially after Natsu left, I was always on edge because I felt the urge to heal the children whenever they got hurt. I was constantly at risk of being found out… But here I was, talking openly to people I had just met about my parent who was a dragon.

They weren't going to hand me into the police or send me to an insane asylum. It was a breath of fresh air.

A loud sigh from Lucy drew my attention to her, and from the depressed look on her face I assumed Natsu had been mentioned. Both of them always seemed sad or angry when the other was mentioned, and my curiosity as to what was going on was building up.

"Wendy, do you think you'll be okay here? I'll go find Natsu" Lucy asked me tiredly, and I nodded, confused. Why did they act so close, yet at the same time resemble two people who dislike each other?

"What do you think we're gonna do, eat the squirt? Go get your boyfriend already, bunny girl." Gajeel teased, grinning.  
Without saying anything else, the blonde simply walked out.

The mood in the classroom suddenly mirrored my confusion, and there was a few second's silence.  
"What's wrong with Lucy?" the girl with white hair was the first to speak.  
"Doesn't love rival usually shout insults at Gajeel when he teases her?" a pale-skinned blunette asked.  
"Yeah, I thought he at least earned a threat about one of his piercings getting ripped out after that" a raven-haired boy replied absentmindedly.

"You mean she's actually normally feisty? What's got her knickers in a twist then?" Cana asked, drinking from a water bottle that smelt strongly of vodka.

"Wendy, do you know what's wrong?" Levy asked. Everyone's attention was drawn to me.

"I know something's wrong with Natsu. I mean, he smiles a lot more than he used to but at the same time he's acting really cold towards Lucy. They're acting cold towards each other, actually." I voiced my observations, watching everyone's expressions turn into disbelief.

When nobody said anything, I spoke again. "Are they not usually like this?"

"Even though I hate to admit it, my princess and that brother of yours are usually very close. Inseparable, even. It's quite worrying that they're not talking." Loke, Lucy's spirit stated. I found his sudden seriousness surprising; wasn't he just unashamedly flirting with his key owner on the way here?

"Does this have anything to do with what Natsu wanted to tell us? About what happened on Wednesday when they picked you up?" Gildarts asked.

I nodded, the image of Natsu shouting at Lucy after he saved her coming to mind. "That's likely actually." I replied.

I know I should have waited for Lucy and Natsu to come back before I talked about it, but I had no problem with story-telling, despite the seriousness of it which made it a lot more difficult. After all, I read scary stories to the kids at the care home every Halloween. It shouldn't be too different, right?

"You guys fought that monster you called a raven, right? I got attacked too, but by a monster that looked like a phoenix…" I started.  
And I told them the whole day's events, in detail, making sure I included both the news of the new monster and the cause of tension between Lucy and Natsu.  
The raw fear in everyone's eyes made me wish I hadn't told the story alone; I had to bear the burden of bringing bad news all by myself.

"- and then I heard Lucy asking if he was okay, but he just shouted at her, asking her what she was thinking. He smiled at me and her later on though, so it made me confused." I finished.

"That makes sense, then." Gajeel mused.  
"What makes sense?" a scarlet-haired girl snapped. I noticed that she seemed the most affected by what I had to say, especially about the phoenix.

"The whole thing between flame butt and Lucy." The raven-haired boy replied when Gajeel remained silent, continuing when the majority of the group gave him blank looks. "He probably wanted her to stay back, but she ended up joining the fight anyway."

"So? According to Wendy, she saved him." Levy retorted.  
"By nearly killing herself in the process." Gajeel's statement had the desired dramatic effect.

"He doesn't want to see her get hurt again." The red-head spoke again, this time in a much softer tone. I could see a newfound understanding in her eyes.  
"But getting angry at her isn't the solution. He's just hurting her emotionally rather than physically." The white-haired girl reasoned.

"We should just leave those dense dorks alone to handle their little communication problems themselves. Maybe a little bit of alcohol will get them talking?" Cana suggested, lying down on a desk with her head hanging off the edge, upside down.

After digesting all this new information, I decided I should change the subject by asking everyone their names. Cana was harsh but she was right, at least about the communication part. I honestly felt like giving Natsu a famous Carla scolding about his problems, but this was something he would have to sort out himself.  
After all, he obviously cared a lot about Lucy. Probably more than he realised.

 **ERZA POV**

Something I had mastered in that concentration camp was the art of keeping composed and not letting my emotions get the best of me. It was a useful strategy for survival; those sadistic guards found little joy in hurting a kid who showed no reactions.

But after coming to Magnolia college and meeting these courageous people who I was lucky enough to call my friends, I realised that they were unknowingly breaking down my barriers bit by bit. And honestly, I had never felt so relieved.  
It was wonderful to be able to talk about my friends in the concentration camp, letting my tears fall, and receive empathy and understanding rather than a cruel sneer.

When I was told that the worst of the worst was happening by this little girl whom I saw myself in, I let my anger and fear out simply by snapping at Gajeel. Because I knew that this small emotional outburst was okay in a situation like this.

Having an emotional outburst is normal to most people, but it was a huge achievement for me. I was recovering from my traumatic ordeal in that camp.

And why is this the worst of the worst, you ask? Because I had no information on this new monster. I had only been aware of the ravens because they were trialled out using me as a victim. I was glad that they had the same weakness in the eyes, but it also meant that there were probably many other types of monsters out there to get us.

And there was no way of preparing ourselves. Natsu and Lucy probably wanted to consult me about it.

So when Lucy came into the room, Natsu trailing slightly after her shooting her glances with mixed emotions and muttering something about oversleeping, I decided to be straightforward and blunt with them.

"I did not encounter the phoenix or any other monster in the concentration camp. I'm afraid there may be more types." I said, loudly enough for everyone to hear.  
As I predicted, there was silence following my announcement.

"You're sure? None of your friends ever talked about seeing one? Rob? Jellal?" Natsu asked desperately, making me flinch when he said the names. Oddly enough though, it made me happy that he actually remembered some of the people I had mentioned.

"It wasn't really… something we wanted to talk about at the time." I replied. "Besides, Rob never encountered any. He was a celestial mage without his keys, remember? The monsters wouldn't target him specifically." I continued, not wanting to miss the opportunity to talk more about my father figure.

Natsu took a deep breath, looking focused. "I guess we'll just have to find out for ourselves what they're like, then." He mused confidently, smashing his closed fists together.  
"Gihi, sounds fun. I've always liked surprises anyway." Gajeel grinned.

As everyone started agreeing with them, I really couldn't find it in me to call them naïve. I really wanted to believe in them, and I guess I did. Even without his flames, Natsu was easily able to melt the tension in the room.

"Erza?" Lucy interrupted my internal dialogue, looking like she was deep in thought. "Would you say that there was less security on Rob because he was a celestial mage?" She asked.

"Now that you mention it, I think that was the case." I replied. "The rest of us had magic nullification ropes and bracelets to keep us in check along with extra guards. Rob was only a potential threat because of his physical strength, so magic nullification was not necessary."

Lucy's eyes widened and I could almost see a light bulb flashing on in her brain.

 **LUCY POV**

This… this was perfect. Not only would I be able to protect everyone here if the worst case scenario happened, but I could also bring my OTP together!  
Okay, enough fangirling. Time to get serious, Lucy.

"Levy, do you think you would be able to make identical copies of my keys?" I suddenly turned to my bookworm friend, my abruptness gaining everyone's attention.  
"Erm… I think so. It's not that simple though; first of all the replicated keys wouldn't be functional, and then I would need the materials to make them-"

"Non-functional is good. And as for materials, I'm sure the iron Pez dispenser here would be capable of supplying the metal?" I asked, gesturing to Gajeel.

"Mind telling us what you're up to, Princess?" Loke asked, looking thoroughly confused.  
Ah, my revealing moment of genius. Leaving out my plans to get Levy and Gajeel to work together in order to make them realise their love for each other, I answered Loke's question.

"Levy and Gajeel will make replicas of my keys. Everyone will receive at least one key. If the unimaginable happens and one of you gets captured, security for you in the concentration camp will be lax because you'll be branded as a celestial mage. It'll increase your chances of escape if you wait for the right moment to reveal your true magic. It'll also increase your chances of survival if a celestial mage like Rob didn't encounter the monsters."

I took in the expressions of awe and felt proud of my idea. Even if my fighting abilities weren't great, I could still protect my friends to some degree, and it allowed me to relax slightly.  
As I looked around, however, I noticed that my speech had not inspired a positive response out of one person.

"And what about you? What happens if you get sent to a concentration camp? You _are_ a celestial mage." Natsu spat, making me confused as to whether he was angry or genuinely concerned.

"Guess I'd better not get captured then." I muttered, feeling nervous under Natsu's continuous glare.

Before Natsu could retort venomously, which is what he very much looked like he wanted to do, Gildarts held up his hand to silence us all. I noticed that everyone's enthusiasm for my idea was somewhat deflated, however it was still there.

"When we think of suitable measures for Lucy, we will discuss it. Levy and Gajeel, you will work together to make the keys, yes?" the teacher asked with authority.  
I noticed a slight blush on Levy's cheeks as she shared a look with Gajeel and nodded with determination.

"Well now that last Wednesday's events are out of the way, let's get to what I originally planned to do today. For now, I just want a general idea of where everyone is with their magic skills. Which means demonstrations. Try not to destroy too much." He finished with a wink.

"And demonstrating in front of everyone will share general knowledge of your powers, which will make for better team work, right?" Lisanna added.

"I didn't think of that! I was going to test you guys individually" Gildarts laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"But then Juvia won't get to see how powerful Gray is!" the girl cried  
"Yeah, I won't get to see how easily I could beat him!" Natsu shouted, smirking mockingly at Gray, only to receive a snow ball to the face.

"Can demonstrations start now?" Gray asked the teacher, lazily forming another snow ball whilst Natsu's hand set on fire.

"Hahahaha if someone were to sneak up on us right now, you guys would be sooooo fucked" Cana slurred, rolling up her sleeves sloppily.  
"Nah, we got that covered. We can hear anyone coming within a 200 metre radius, right salamander? Squirt?" Gajeel reasoned.

"That explains a lot, then." I mused, reminding myself to ask about their other senses when they were showing off their powers.

And we all watched with fascination as we were shown a wide array of powers, asking all the questions we had not had an opportunity to ask before.

* * *

 **A/N: And after a whole lot of burning rather than tanning later, I am back from my holiday.  
Honestly, I'm not too happy with this chapter, but that's probably because I wrote half of it before the holiday and had to pick up from where I left off. I hope you guys still liked it though! **

**Natsu's and Lucy's tiff still hasn't been sorted out, but rest assured I'm planning Nalu development for the next chapter, and possibly Gruvia. Also, there will be a surprise in the next chapter which was inspired by some of the reviews I got.**

 **Guest – those are some good points; I guess I took some liberties for plot convenience there. I might edit that chapter slightly in the future, and put more attention towards Lucy's pain. Thanks!**

 **Thank you everyone for all the reviews and remember, I do plan to take them into account**

 **-usnoozulose**


	14. Chapter 14

I was glad for the distraction of work today. Honestly, if I had been left with nothing to do on a Sunday like this, I would have gone crazy.  
The thing is, recently, whenever I've had any time to myself, the only thing I can do is think about Natsu's behaviour towards me. Trying to think of a motive for the way he was acting. Trying to figure out a way to corner him and talk to him. Getting angry at him.

Sometimes, wondering if I should just accept the fact that he's blatantly trying to cut me out of his life. It's not like I'm dependent on him; I take pride in my independence.  
That doesn't mean it was easy, though.

"Lucy? You've been staring at the coffee maker for 10 minutes now. It's done." Mira appeared next to me, laughing though I could see the concern in her eyes.  
I smiled at her and poured the two coffees for table 5, bringing it to the customers and apologising for the wait. Ugh, I came to work for a distraction, not to be distracted by other things!

I was looking around for another potential table to serve when Mira pulled me into the supply closet, away from the busy eating area.  
"There's something wrong, isn't there?" she asked.  
I put on a fake smile and was about to say no when she interrupted me, "don't smile like that. Just admit that something's wrong, OK? If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. Just don't lie to me." she said softly.

Yes, there was something wrong. I was terrified for my life and the people I cared about the whole time. The person who I thought was my best friend, who I could talk to and joke with to lighten the mood, no longer wanted to acknowledge my existence.  
I looked down and nodded while she drew me into a hug.  
And here was Mira, someone who I had grown very close to, embracing me in a way my mother used to.

Despite feeling slightly wrong, it was very comforting. It reminded me that I wasn't alone, and as I clutched the older girl, I felt some of my stress ebb away. Funny, what a small gesture like a hug could do.

"Lucy!" I looked up to see Lisanna had bolted into the room, clutching into a piece of paper. She hastily closed and locked the door behind her.  
"Lucy… is this you?" she asked, holding up the item in her hand.

I thought my world couldn't be falling apart any more until I saw what she was holding.

A wanted poster with my face on it.

This was true dread. It felt like Gildarts' earthquake was raging inside my brain as it failed to find a way out of this.

The police had found me.  
Well, at least, they were damn close to it.

"There's police in the restaurant right now, asking people if they've seen you. There's a different surname on the poster but… oh, Lucy…" Lisanna's wide blue eyes were the only things keeping me anchored right now.

 **MIRA POV**

When Lucy started hyperventilating, I quickly snatched the offending item from my little sister's grasp. Why on earth would she show her something that would provoke such a reaction?

What was it anyway? I'd sort of pegged that Lucy was a runaway of some sorts. Maybe people were looking for her? I felt a surge of protectiveness for the blonde as a glanced down at the piece of paper.  
That surge was rapidly extinguished when I read the words.

WANTED: LUCY HEARTFILIA, MAGE.

I ignored the reward and 'last seen' small print. I ignored the almost crudely drawn picture that barely resembled the girl in front of me. My eyes were stuck to that one word.

"Mage?" I asked, my eyes rising to find the two other girls in the supply closet, frozen as they stared at me. Lisanna was clutching Lucy's shoulders, having calmed her down from her panic attack. I barely registered the layers upon layers of fear in my co-worker's eyes.

Lisanna was touching her. The mage. I had been friends with a mage. I felt protective over a _mage._

Before I knew it, I had instinctively pushed the blonde away from my sister, shielding one of the only remaining members of my family with my body.  
"HAVE YOU DONE ANYTHING TO HER?" I screamed, unable to control the volume of my voice.

Lucy looked up at me in horror, keeping silent. I had no time for silence. Not when she could harm Lisanna in the blink of an eye.  
"HAVE YOU CURSED-"  
"MIRA!" I felt my sister yanking my shoulder from behind me, trying to spin me around. But I knew not to turn my back on or underestimate a mage.

 _I was 13 at the time, Elfman was 10 and Lisanna was 7. We lived without parents, but we managed.  
Until one night, some guy with a long cloak decided to raid the house we were squatting in. I remember thinking that that was the lowest of the low. If you want to steal something, steal from the rich. Not from children who barely had enough to survive on themselves._

 _So, I confronted him, my siblings either side of me. I told him to fuck off, basically. But he just got angry. He told us that if we didn't quieten down, he would hurt us.  
Pssht. I had been living on the streets nearly all my life. I could easily take him on, I thought._

 _So, being the little brat I was, I started screaming at him to get out, raring for a fight._

 _I'll never forget the looks on my younger sibling's faces as they were illuminated by the sickening green light that started emanating from the intruder's hands.  
My mind went into overdrive. It was a projectile. Whatever he was forming, he was going to throw it at us. I had seconds to react. That thing looked destructive…_

 _But I only came up with one solution in the short time I had.  
I pushed Elfman and Lisanna away from me, bringing up my arm at the last second to shield my eyes from the blinding light._

 _I woke up several hours later, judging from the darkness outside. My brother and sister were across the room, knocked out but without injury. Our food had been taken.  
And the arm I used to block the projectile that mage threw at me?_

 _Brown. scaly. Ugly. It wasn't my arm anymore.  
What the media said was true. Mages curse us. They are dangerous. _

_I covered up the demon arm, unable to tell anyone, even my siblings about it. I eventually worked out that if I concentrated hard enough, I could somehow change my arm back to the way it was, but I couldn't keep that up all the time. I woke up every morning with the demon arm, my concentration having been lost while I slept._

 _I was constantly in fear… I know what they do to mages, but what happens to the people who have been cursed?_

"Lisanna, get out now. Call the police." I ordered.  
"Mira, please listen. Lucy isn't going to curse us. She-"  
"Don't listen to her lies! She's brainwashed you!" I cried, dread gripping at me. What if Lisanna's mind has already been tampered with? Why is she defending the mage?

"I'm not going to harm you. The media lie about us, Mira." Lucy whispered, kneeling down and pressing her palms to the floor.  
That gesture… it was body language for surrendering. A white flag. Against my will, it calmed me down a bit. There was no sickening green light, at least.

But she was still lying.

"Mages do curse people. There's no use lying to someone who's already experienced it." I spat.  
I sensed Lisanna stiffen behind me and instantly covered my mouth. Why, after years of hiding it, had that small piece of information managed to slip out?

"What do you mean?" my little sister asked quietly. I didn't answer her.  
"I use spirit magic. I asked one of my spirits a question the other day, and he said that there's no evidence of mages that can actually do curse magic, so-"

"SHUT UP!" I interrupted Lucy's explanation. She was the liar here, not me. I would not allow her to invalidate what that mage had done to me.

"Lisanna, get out." I ordered again. If this mage wanted proof, I would give it to her. I'd like to see her come up with some sort of excuse for my arm.  
But Lisanna… I couldn't allow her to see my curse. I just couldn't. No matter what, she would always be my little sister. I needed to protect her from this messed up stuff.

"No, Mira. I want to know what's happening." She stated with determination, and I almost growled. Trust her to be stubborn at a time like this.  
"You don't need to be involved in this-" I argued.

"I'm already involved! What's all this about you experiencing a curse?" she sounded nervous. I replied again with only silence.  
"Is this why you haven't allowed me into your room ever since that night the mage with the green magic stole our food?" she asked gently.

Ignoring my rule never to turn my back on a mage, I spun around to look at her. Memories of her knocking on my door after waking up from a nightmare flooded my mind. The guilt of having to tell her to go away every single time hit me for the first time in years.  
In her eyes, I saw a newfound maturity that I hadn't seen before.

She had a right to know why I made her deal with her nightmares alone.

 **LUCY POV**

Mira had been cursed?  
I was panicking now. Maybe the concentration camps actually did have a reason to lock us up.  
The idea made me sick.

"Okay. I'll show you both." Mira sighed, turning back to me and bringing me back to the present.  
She lifted up her sleeve to reveal her arm. I studied the arm, but it seemed normal enough. Was there supposed to be some sort of mark somewhere?

Suddenly, a puff of smoke engulfed the older girl's arm. As the smoke drifted away, it revealed a scaly brown arm which resembled that of a demon's.  
I felt my jaw drop as I gasped.

But my shock wasn't at the appearance of her arm. Rather, from the immense magic pressure I felt coming off it.

"Mira, that's-"  
"A mage shot a green ball of magic at me and my siblings, and I woke up with this cursed arm. Now tell me, Lucy. What were you saying about Mages not having curse magic?" the girl interrupted me, again showing me the terrifying side of her I had not realised existed.

"Can I tell you something my mother told me once?" I asked her, desperately hoping she would listen to what I had to say.  
"I don't give a damn-"  
"Let her speak." Lisanna didn't allow her older sister to finish her outburst. I felt relieved the younger sibling was still on my side, even after seeing her sister's arm.

I took a deep breath.  
"Mama told me that most mages learn their magic from someone else. They tend to have the most controllable magic because they've had help. She also told me that some people, who happen to have the potential to be a mage, use magic as a result of dire circumstances."

"So?" Mira asked, confused.  
"You're not cursed, Mira. You're a mage. A powerful one. I can feel the magic pressure coming from your arm." I replied.

Her eyes widened, and she seemed lost for words. I saw the beginning of tears forming in her eyes.

"There are good and bad mages, just like there and good and bad people. I'm sorry that mage attacked you. But it looks like you managed to transform your arm to absorb the attack in order to protect your siblings." I smiled when I said this. The older girl simply stared at me, looking like a giant weight had been lifted off her.

"Are you girls hiding in there? There are no waitresses out here to serve the customers!" My boss's voice made us all jump as he started pounding on the door.

Mira opened the door in a flash, her aura no longer sinister, and her arm back to normal. I almost choked on my own spit at how quickly she was able to change back into the calm, helpful waitress I had always known.  
"Sorry Yajima, Lucy was just hiding from the police." She said sweetly, and I felt dread overtaking me. Was she still convinced I was a bad person? Was she really going to turn me in after what I had told her?

"She thought they were cute and was too nervous to be around them. Can you believe it; she was asking me to give her a makeover in the supply closet! Are they gone yet?" she giggled, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I started spluttering at the 'cute' part, which probably just made the story more convincing to the boss.  
"Fair enough" Yajima chuckled, rolling his eyes at me. Ugh, I would so be getting Mira back for embarrassing me. "And the police are gone. They seem to be casually checking around every store." He continued.

Okay, now I could breathe easy. It was random that they came into the restaurant. It was okay. They had no evidence or reason to suspect that I was here.  
"Funnily enough, they were looking for a girl called Lucy that looked a lot like you." The small man smiled at me, and my heart began beating faster.  
"But the drawing was of a sad girl who looked like she didn't even know what smiling was. I told them they were wasting their time here; our Lucy was definitely not the one on the poster."

I stared at him, unable to keep a straight face. He was either thick or… he was protecting me.  
"Anyway, enough chit-chat. Back to work, the lot of you!" he shouted at the three of us.  
"I don't even work here-"  
"Back to work!" Yajima interrupted Lisanna, intimidating her into putting on an apron.

Smiling, I promptly started taking orders from the irritated customers who claimed that they had been waiting for years.  
I left it to Lisanna to explain to Mira about the Saturday detention club.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Natsu only managed to become the subject of my thoughts again after I had finished work. Rather than going home and dwelling on it, I decided to go for a late night walk in the forests instead.  
The forests here reminded me of the ones back home where mother would take me to go exploring on her good health days. She would point out all the different species of plants and bugs, and would prompt me to be quiet if we happened to pass a rabbit or deer. She would then lead me into a clearing where we would lay down and wait for night time. The majority of my astronomy education occurred in that place.

I couldn't find the clearing by myself after she died.

As I entered the woods, I made sure that my phone was fully charged so that I could use google maps in case I couldn't find my way out again.  
It was nearly dark out and the various bugs were getting louder. The fresh air calmed me as I mentally regurgitated all of the things my mother had taught me.

I thought about the stress I had gone through today with the whole police and Mirajane fiasco. I hoped that nobody in town realised that I was the person on the wanted poster.

"I almost ended up in a concentration camp today." I said aloud to myself. The wind was soft and cold against my face; I realised that I was crying.

I heard footsteps approaching me from ahead and hastily wiped my eyes, adopting a combat pose.  
I learned soon enough that it wasn't necessary.

 **NATSU POV**

Focusing intently, I engulfed my body in flames, trying to make the radius of fire extend further than it had before.  
It was exhausting, especially since I had been training all day without eating. I'd asked Happy to bring me food hours ago, but his failure to return probably meant he was distracted by something. Probably Carla.

The alternative was that he was lost, which meant I'd have to find him. Sighing, I put out my flames and stood up to smell the air for his scent.

My eyes flew open when I detected a scent other than fish and cat hair. Vanilla and strawberries? What the hell was Lucy doing in the middle of the forest?  
Was my mind playing tricks on me, seeing as she wouldn't stop fighting her way into my thoughts the entire day?

"I almost ended up in a concentration camp today." My sensitive hearing just about picked up on her whisper. I started to panic. What did she mean by that?  
I bolted off running in her direction, weaving through trees, the worst case scenarios playing through my head. Had she been attacked again? Was she running away from Magnolia? Was it my fault?

When she came into my line of vision, I checked her over for injuries. None, I registered with relief. No backpack either, so she wasn't leaving.  
I didn't have to smell the salt to know she'd been crying, though.

"Natsu?" she questioned incredulously.  
"What are you doing here?" I asked bluntly. No matter how much I tried to let it go, I was still angry at her. I didn't hate her, though. I could never hate her.  
"I could ask you the same question" she retorted, looking hurt.

Ugh, no, I wasn't supposed to be making her feel bad! I sighed, deciding to tell the truth.  
"I was training in a clearing I found up ahead." I said, pointing in the direction I had come from. Her expression changed into a longing one.

"Can I see it?" she asked tentatively.  
"Sure, it probably smells like burning, but it has a great view of the sky." I gestured for her to follow me, feeling like a real estate agent.

Okay. Now was my chance to talk to her about how stupid she was. But how did I phrase it in a way that didn't insult her intelligence? Ugh, words were never my thing. I've been avoiding her, getting flashbacks of the phoenix's dead body approaching her whenever I made eye contact with her.

The only way to stop this would be if she promised me that she wouldn't put herself in danger like that again. And to train myself to protect her and everyone else against those monsters.

"My mum and I used to stargaze in a forest clearing back home. That's where I learnt about the different constellations relating to my magic." Lucy broke the silence between us as we walked towards the clearing. I grinned at her when I realised that that was the reason she wanted to see it. She smiled back, albeit looking slightly confused at my reaction.

Yeah, I've definitely missed that expression on her face.

"You should show me them tonight then." I said, hoping that waiting for complete darkness would give me enough time to talk to her.  
While I was at it, an interrogation about what she'd said to herself before I found her wouldn't hurt.

* * *

 **A/N: I know I sort of maybe perhaps said there would be more Nalu and Gruvia but I felt like I'd written enough for this chapter. At least I got a bit of Natsu's point of view in, right? Plus, cliff-hangers are always fun**

 **For the people who wanted Mira to have magic, you're welcome. I never said Mira didn't have magic, just that you shouldn't assume it… Also, I'm changing Mira's magic slightly into transformation magic rather than takeover, but it has the same principles.  
The guy with the green magic isn't anyone from the series by the way, in case people were wondering. I guess you could call him an original character but I don't really plan on bringing him up again.**

 **Sabrina-luna-potter : *taps nose***

 **I don't want to turn into a review beg but… please review. Even if I don't reply to it, I still really appreciate it. Thanks to all the people who have been reviewing!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	15. Chapter 15

**LUCY POV**

Stupid Natsu. Acting like he was my friend again. Tempting me into not questioning him by mentioning a clearing. A clearing I could see the stars from.  
That asshole.  
Well, his sneaky ruse would last no longer.

We arrived in an area where trees ceased to grow, leaving a scattering of buttercups and daisies to take their place. There was a large burnt patch in the middle, which seemed to have attracted wildlife seeking warmth in the cold autumn weather. The smell of burning was not unpleasant; it reminded me of the briquettes mother used to burn in our fireplace at home.  
I resisted the weird urge to grab onto my companion's hand as a wave of bittersweet nostalgia hit me. No, now was the perfect time to interrogate him instead.

"Natsu…?" I asked, my sentence unexpectedly ending as a question when I saw the boy in question lying on the floor. "The stargazing doesn't start 'till it gets dark, you know." I chortled at his apparent eagerness.  
When he didn't answer, I glanced at his expression, only to see one of pain.

"Natsu! What's wrong? Are you hurt? Speak to me!" my brain was instantly in panic mode as I kneeled over him. The dragon slayer could barely even open his eyes. If a phoenix couldn't seriously hurt the indestructible idiot, it made me shiver to wonder what could.

Natsu mumbled something I couldn't make out, so I lowered my head to hear him better.  
"…Food…"

I had to study his face for several seconds for proof that he was being serious.

"You're on the floor… because you want food?" I asked in disbelief. That was by far the last thing I expected. Then again, it made sense. This was Natsu.  
"It's been a whole day… so weak…" Natsu strained to speak, his arm reaching out towards the sky.

"You know, for a guy who takes the piss out of Loke for taking drama A-level, you're a total drama queen yourself." I scoffed, opening up my handbag.  
Natsu made an indignant noise which turned into a delighted gasp once I retrieved the restaurant leftovers from my bag.

"You can have this-" I paused, allowing Natsu to smile and make a grab for the food, only for me to move it out of his reach. "- _if_ you tell me why you've been avoiding me since Wednesday."

Before I knew it, the supposedly 'weak' pinkette was wrestling with me, playfully trying to get the food in my hand.  
"But Luuuuuuuuuuuucyyyyy" he whined.

"I'm serious, Natsu." I said, unable to keep the sadness I had felt over the last few days out of my voice.  
The boy stopped and looked me in the eye, torn.  
"Food first, then we'll talk." He agreed.  
"Promise?"  
"Promise." He responded immediately.

Sighing, I handed him the food, which he took gratefully, before I made my way over to the burnt patch of grass. The squirrels and birds scattered as I lay down on the warm earth, which is when I realised that I'd been freezing on my way here. Brilliant idea, Lucy. Taking a night-time stroll in the forest in this weather without a coat. Turning into a block of ice was exactly what I needed right now.

"You're an idiot, Luce."  
"Yeah, I know- wait, WHAT?" Did I accidentally say my lack of a coat problem out loud? Why else would he call me that?

"Do you know why you're an idiot, though?" Natsu asked, seeming completely unaware of my seething.  
"I didn't bring a coat." I responded with embarrassment.  
"Nope."

I looked at him, shocked. Did he really mean…  
"You think I'm dumb, huh? A dumb blonde? Is that what you think of me?" I stood up to face him, my fists shaking.  
I'd heard all the blonde jokes before and suffered the discrimination from people who took one look at me and wrote me off. Had my best friend done the same thing? Decided I wasn't worth his time because I didn't give off the impression that I was intelligent?

"NO! That's not what I meant at all! You're one of the smartest people I know!" he had his hands up, looking genuinely panicked.  
"Then tell me why I'm an idiot already! I'm sick of playing 21 questions-" I spat.  
"BECAUSE YOU DON'T FUCKING VALUE YOURSELF!" Natsu shouted, breathing heavily.

It was the tone of voice he used which made me swallow my retort. Amongst the anger, there was another un-missable emotion there; fear.

"What do you mean?" I asked simply.  
Natsu pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a few calming breaths before he responded.  
"You remember when the Raven was approaching you after injuring you, right? What did you tell everyone else to do?"

"I told you, I'm not going to play 21 questions-"  
"Answer me." he interrupted sternly, his eyes burning into mine.

"I told you guys to run."  
"And what would have happened to you if we ran?"  
"I… I would have died." I answered. It was a scary thought. I guess I was prepared to die at the time, though. After all, I had no idea the majority of the people in the room were mages.

"You've experienced grief, Luce. You know pretty well what your death would have done to the rest of us."

At the back of my mind, I knew. I knew that it was reckless. But I wanted to protect my friends. I opened my mouth to say this, but Natsu interrupted.

"And then after I _specifically_ requested that you didn't go near the phoenix, which you agreed to, you went and put your life in danger _again_ -"  
"Is that what this is all about?" I took my turn to interrupt him. "You expected me to just sit by and watch while that monster kept hurting you? You really think I stepped in with the intention of nearly killing myself?"

"The point here is that you could have died again, and you don't seem to fucking care!" we were eye to eye now, and I could see every line of anger on his face.

"No, the point here is that you're so used to being the protector that you don't understand the concept of someone actually wanting to protect you." To my surprise, my voice came out calm.  
I could almost see the gears ticking in his brain as he processed what I said.

"Natsu, I understand. I know why you were angry now. But I'm not going to stop protecting the people I love just so that I can save myself. If I'm not allowed to protect people, then by that logic, you aren't allowed to protect me. I would gladly give my life if that were the cost to save my friends." I declared truthfully.

Natsu's eyes went fiery after I said the last sentence, and he gripped both my shoulders tightly. Not enough to hurt, though.  
"You aren't supposed to die for your friends, Luce. You're supposed to live for them." His voice was stern.

I smiled at my best friend. He could be really smart when he wasn't having some petty argument with Gray or trying to find new ways to annoy me.  
"Let's live together then." I said.

My eyes widened after a few seconds when the implications of what I'd just said finally hit me.  
"I- I mean n-not live together! L-like in the same house or anything!" I cried, waving my hands in front of my face. "I meant live together as in b-both of us living and not dying, alright?" oh god, my face must have long since passed the colour of Natsu's hair. It was probably closer to Erza's hair colour by now.

"You're such a weirdo, Luce." Natsu chuckled as I hid my burning cheeks.

"Anyway we should be able to see the stars now." I changed the subject, heading back to the warm patch of grass.

It occurred to me that everything that had been bothering me for the last few days was now gone. I felt free. My smile felt natural again.  
Was one small argument really all it took to resolve all the negative emotions I'd been feeling for the last few days?

I guess that's the point of arguments. Letting out all your anger whilst demanding to be heard. The magic of it was that I would have never understood Natsu this much without it.

"So which consonants do you know about, then?" Natsu asked as we lay down next to each other. Natsu was right – this place had a great view of the sky. I could see everything from here.  
"Well first of all, they're called constellations, not consonants. Mama taught me all 88 of them, actually."

I started pointing out a few of the main ones, including the ones from which my keys were based on. I was just getting to Aquarius when Natsu interrupted me unexpectedly.

"Hey, Luce. Why did you say you almost got sent to a concentration camp today?" he asked, startling me. I stopped myself from questioning how he'd even heard me. Hell, the dragon slayer could probably hear how my heart rate increased just now.  
"First, answer my question. When we passed my hometown on the train on Wednesday, where there… wanted posters for me there?" I asked tentatively, registering the sudden tenseness his body adopted.

He didn't need to say anything for me to know that the answer was yes. I told him a brief version of what had happened earlier on today, and other than looking generally concerned, he perked up when he heard that we had a new addition to our Saturday detention club.

He then asked the question I had been waiting for him to finally blurt out.  
"What are you gonna do if you do get caught? Hypothetically, I mean. Nobody will be able to lay a finger on you when I'm there."

I smiled at his confidence.  
"There is actually something my mother told me about once that I could do." I answered, eyes fixed on the sky.  
"And why didn't you mention that earlier? Can you do it without your keys?" he asked eagerly.

"As far as my mum knew, it's never been done before. All she told me was that a destructive spell sacred to celestial mages exists. It doesn't require keys; just raw emotion and a hell of a lot of magic power." I answered.

"Show me!" Natsu shouted excitedly, making me face-palm.  
"As much as you irritate me, Natsu, you don't provoke me nearly enough to do the spell. Plus, it's a long shot that I'll even be able to do it in the first place." I muttered.

"Well like I said, you're not going to get captured anyway. I reckon we make a great team against those monsters!" Natsu beamed, instantly lighting up the dark atmosphere.  
"Yeah, you distract them while I find a way to kill them in one hit. They don't stand a chance against us!" I imitated the dragon slayer's attitude.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

The comfort of being under the stars, the emotional load that had been lifted off my chest after a hard day, and the warmth of the ground beneath me were soon making me feel very drowsy. Natsu and I had been talking about everything and nothing for hours now. Catching up for the days we'd missed, I guessed. I was about to suggest going back to our dorms when Natsu sleepily interrupted my train of thought.

"Hey Luce, there's one more thing that's bothering me." his words were slurred from exhaustion.  
"What is it?"

"How come you told Gajeel about your magic first and not me?"  
I almost laughed at how whiny he sounded about it. Despite how confuddled my brain was with sleepiness, I still had it in me to mess with the pinkette.

"Well you see, me and Gajeel have a very _special_ relationship. I wouldn't expect you to understand." I had to turn away so he wouldn't catch my failure of an attempt to keep a straight face.

"But you're my best friend, not his!" Natsu shouted indignantly.  
"Told you, you wouldn't understand." I teased, surprised at how fast this was riling him up.

"But I was the first person you met in Magnolia!"

Okay, he deserved to know I was joking now.  
"Nats-"

"I was the one who stood in between you and the raven, and you were the one who managed to find me after the fight even though you were really injured!" he continued.

"Nat-"

"I told you everything about my dad, and you've told me everything about your mum."

"Yeah ok-"

"We sit together every lunch time, and you even convinced me to go get Wendy in time to save her life!"  
I stopped trying to interrupt him.

"And even after I treated you like shit for the last few days, you still agreed to attempt to teach me about the stars. So no, I don't understand why you're closer to Gajeel. I'm the one who lo-"

He stopped dead in his rant, and I was thankful that I now had an opportunity to speak; I didn't bother to ponder why he'd ceased to talk so suddenly.

"Natsu, I was kidding. Gajeel overheard me talking about magic when I was helping Loke, and he confronted me. He scared the shit out of me, actually. I didn't know until after I'd tried to maim him that he was a mage as well."

Natsu looked like he was lost in thought, but he still managed a smirk. "You tried to maim him?"

"Sure did. I mean, we talked now and again about top secret mage stuff but even when I didn't know you were a mage, I still considered myself closer to you. Besides, Gajeel's way too interested in Levy right now." I finished slyly.

"What makes you say that?" Natsu asked, sounding genuinely confused.  
"Oh please, like you haven't noticed the sexual tension between Levy and Gajeel."  
"That's why you made them work together!" Natsu blurted in realisation, making me giggle.

"Bingo!"

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

 _"You! Get up!"  
It was dark. It was cold. So cold. A rough voice was screaming at me.  
From the little light available, I saw a dark blur approaching me.  
A sudden pain exploded on my abdomen, where my injuries from the Raven were still healing.  
I cried out when the pain hit again, and I realised that I was being kicked by the black blur with a rough voice._

 _"Get up! You're up against the phoenix today, girl."  
Fear struck in every fibre of my being when I heard that.  
I could see better now; I was in a cage. My wrists were tied. Panicking, I looked for my keys. They weren't there._

 _I didn't even bother asking where I was. I knew where I was. But how did I end up here? Did I get caught? My memory was failing me.  
I was forced onto my feet, feeling too weak to walk properly as I was shoved towards another room. Onlookers from other cages looked at me in pity, however I had no idea how I knew this; not one of them had a face._

 _The door opened, and my heart started beating erratically.  
"No…"  
just like the black blur said. There was a phoenix. I was too far away to feel its heat, but I knew that I was going to be burnt alive in a few seconds.  
"No no no" I was babbling to myself, trying desperately to avoid being thrown into the room._

 _I was going to die. I was going to be murdered. I closed my eyes._

 _"Luce"_

 _As if the new voice had the power to teleport me somewhere else, I felt my surroundings instantly change. Behind my eyelids, I could see light. Not overwhelmingly bright like the phoenix; more like natural sunlight. The rough hands forcing me to my doom were gone. There was a different hand though – it was warming up my freezing hand soothingly._

 _I opened my eyes to see that the voice matched the person. We were on a train together; I was sitting beneath the window holding his hand for support. We'd been in this position before. I didn't know when, but I knew that it was exactly what I needed right now._

 _"Natsu" was all I said before I launched myself at him to bring him into a hug. His heat enveloped me, and it felt like home. I felt like everything was going to be okay if we could just stay like this._

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

I loved mornings where the sunlight leaking through my window woke me up rather than my alarm clock. The birds tweeting rhythmically wasn't a bad playlist to wake up to, either. I must've left my window open while I slept or something. They were unusually loud today.

While I waited for my alarm clock to go off, an unexpected movement of my bed made me vacate the land of the partially awake. Fully alert, I attempted to sit up, but something was holding me down.

"Five more minutes" my bed mumbled.

If I'd screamed any louder, I suspect even people in Alvarez would've heard me.  
The thing holding me down released me at once.

"Jheez Luce, you know my hearing's 100 times more sensitive than yours, right?"

I froze, only moving my eyes to fully take in what I thought was my bed.  
I was looking into the eyes of an irritated Natsu with even more wild hair than usual, rubbing his ears.

I'm pretty sure I broke the sound barrier in my speedy effort to get off him.

"Why… how… why were we… why did you…?" I stuttered pathetically. Forget Erza's hair, I'm sure the colour of my cheeks were now burning an even deeper scarlet.

"It's too early for charades, Luce." Natsu mused, lying back down on the grass. How was he not affected by this?  
"Oh my god, we slept out here overnight." I said as the realisation hit me.

"No shit, Sherlock." Natsu grinned.  
"You! Why did you have me in some sort of… death grip?" I asked, struggling to find a word other than 'cuddling' or 'hugging' to describe the way we woke up.

"Why're you accusing me? You started freaking out in your sleep and it woke me up so I tried to calm you down. After that, you wouldn't let go of me." Natsu turned his face away from me, his voice sounding entirely nonchalant.

I didn't know what to say. Was that really true? Well it makes sense, seeing as he would be the only source of warmth out here… ugh, what am I thinking? None of this makes sense!

I just couldn't escape the knowledge that that had been the easiest sleep I'd had in a long time.

"Hey… isn't it Monday today?" Natsu asked.

Upon hearing this information, I instantly reached into my bag to retrieve my phone. I blanched when a list of problems started forming in my head.

1) It was indeed Monday. A school day.  
2) It was 11am. Classes had started hours ago.  
3) 44 missed calls from a range of people, mainly Wendy. They'd probably thought something bad happened to Natsu and I, and were worried out of their minds.  
4) Battery at 1%. Not enough to contact anyone back or use google maps to find our way out of the forest.  
5) I had no idea if Natsu knew how to find his way out.  
6) Over 50 texts. The snippets of texts I saw on the lock screen made my insides twist.

Why were Juvia and Gray in hospital?

* * *

 **A/N: I'm really glad I took some extra time to write this chapter.  
Also, I'm going to shamelessly self-promote by saying that I've written some hinted Nalu one-shots that you guys should totally check out if you want something extra to read.**

 **Your Senpai's Lover: Haha, thank you! There's something so American about being called 'so darn cute'**

 **Fanficlove2014: I know, my own writing was making me sad too. Hopefully this chapter cheered you up!**

 **It's gobsmacking that I've reached over 100 followers on my first fanfiction already; a huge thank you to each and every one of you!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	16. Chapter 16

**Gray POV, Sunday Afternoon**

 _"So you like the rain too, huh?"_

Those had been the only words I'd spoken to the blue-haired girl when I first met her in the first week of college.  
I'd needed a bit of a breather after fighting Natsu that day; I would never admit it to him but that dude had way too much stamina. I mean, I was way stronger than him (obviously), but the way he just kept getting up every time I knocked him down made it seem like I was fighting several fights in a row.

I was glad to feel the rain hit my exposed skin once I stepped outside. Another great thing about strolling around in a storm is that nobody's present to comment on my lack of clothing. I was just free to become one with the coldness again, just like I was under Ur's tutelage.

And that's when I saw her. Juvia. She was just sitting there, in the middle of the field, her blue eyes staring into space. She was in my homeroom class; my first impression of her was that she was quiet and preferred not to interact with other people.  
The problem with genuinely quiet people is that they can sometimes unintentionally give off the impression that they're stuck-up, and would probably respond rudely if you spoke to them.

And yeah, maybe I'd gotten that vibe from her on the first day. In my defence, she was conventionally good-looking enough to be the mean girl type.

But the loneliness I saw in her eyes that day as the rain pelted on her pale skin made me realise I was wrong.  
So I talked to her, adopting a rare kind smile.  
And she just stared at me, wide eyes replacing the sad ones I'd seen on her before.

I wasn't prepared for her sudden breach of my personal space. Hell, it felt more like being choked than being hugged.  
That series of events happened weeks ago. From then on, I was suddenly seeing her everywhere. The next few days were a blur of paranoia when every sound of a footstep behind me made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

The only time she came out into the open was to tell her 'love rivals' to get away from me.

The one thing that really, truly confused me, though? I wasn't doing a thing to stop it. Yeah, she was annoying and borderline possessive. She was a stalker. She was obsessed with me for whatever reason.  
And to my surprise, there was something else about her that I couldn't quite put my finger on; but I knew that this thing was the cause of my real issue with Juvia.

So if I disliked her so much, why did I make the mistake of approaching her in the rain yet again today? Beats me. I just came to the school grounds to train, knowing they'd be deserted on a Sunday.

"Are you here to train as well?" I asked, startling her out of whatever was occupying her mind. A second later, I regretted saying the 'as well' part. What if she took that as an invitation to train with me?  
Damn it Gray, you're supposed to be avoiding this girl.

I started mentally counting down the time it would take her to scream, run, and hide, secretly watching me from afar.  
Three…  
Two…  
One…

"Juvia is not here to train."

My eyes widened at her response. She hadn't talked to me like a regular person since… since I had to tell the others what happened to Ur in the concentration camp.

"Then what are you doing on school grounds?" I asked, stuffing my hands into my jean pockets.  
"Juvia was having a bad day and thought that going to a happy place would make her feel better."

"And school is a happy place? You must be ecstatic when you get homework." I joked, letting a slight smile play on my face. When she didn't make eye contact with me, I realised that I probably should have asked her why she had a bad day. Then again, it's not like I cared. Right?

"No, it's not the work. This is the place where Juvia has made and fought alongside her friends." she corrected me. I nodded in understanding, noticing that the rain was easing up from its relentless downpour; a sign that it was probably going to stop soon.

"And your day was bad because…?" I finally asked, allowing my curiosity to get the better of me. I mean, the girl looked entirely downcast. Maybe she was scared about the whole monsters trying to kill us thing?

Juvia finally made eye contact with me, only to give me a questioning look.  
"You don't have to answer that, it's not like I want to pry or I care or-"

"Juvia had a troubling childhood, Gray. It is over now but she still has bad days." she interrupted my rant, smiling sadly.  
"You didn't spend time in a concentration camp like Erza, did you?" I asked, frowning.

"No, however Juvia did find it difficult to control some aspects of her magic when she was a child."

"Then why didn't you get caught? Did your parents protect you?" I asked hastily, regretting it when she flinched at the mention of her parents. I admit, I was grasping at straws trying to find similarities between our childhoods.

"Juvia was too much trouble for her parents. They abandoned her on the doorstep of an orphanage." I could barely hear her sorrowful whisper.  
The rain was pouring down so rapidly now, I'd be surprised if there weren't flood warnings on the news. I was wrong earlier; it was no longer showing any signs of stopping.

As much as her answer made my chest hurt with empathy for what she'd had to go through, I was still in a world of confusion. How did she avoid getting thrown into a concentration camp?  
As badly as I wanted to ask her that, I felt like I should at least attempt to console her. She was staring into space again, her eyes red with tears the rain had instantly washed away.  
That was the problem, though. I'd never been good with the whole cheering up stuff.  
So, unable to think if the right thing to say, I stayed quiet. Kinda pathetic on my part.

"You see, it was always raining. Where Juvia went, the rain followed. Her parents' umbrellas were always breaking. Eventually, they cast her off, saying that she was cursed by a mage and was bringing them bad luck. But Juvia was not cursed. Juvia was the curse, Gray. She is the curse." Her voice came out void of all emotion, which worried me much more than the crying she'd been doing before. Just how long had she been keeping her painful past to herself?

I gaped at her.  
"That's crazy. Your parents… you sure as hell didn't deserve that, Juvia. Surely it must have been a coincidence that the rain followed you?"

"No, Gray. Juvia lied about the extent of her magic to everyone because she was afraid they would reject her." I detected bitterness in her voice.  
The pieces started forming together in my head. How the rain subsided when she smiled and became torrential when she talked about painful things. Her element was _water._

And maybe, just maybe, she'd taken a liking to me because… I enjoyed the rain? I liked the rain which had made her feel like she was unwanted and cursed. The rain which was caused by her.

"Juvia… your magic is remarkable." I was awe-struck. This girl had power over the _weather._ As far as I knew, this rain was spanning as far as the eye could see. And though she looked drained, it didn't even seem like she was trying.

I understood why she felt ashamed, but she shouldn't. Nobody should be made to feel like that.

"They'd love you in those third-world countries where there's no clean water or rain for crops." I finished inspecting the sheer amount of control she had over the sky, instead focusing my gaze on her again.

She looked just about as awe-struck as I did. Honestly, I was glad she believed me and I didn't have to attempt to convince her she wasn't a curse. She was… a friend. And if any asshole insulted the rain in front of her ever again, I'd kick their ass.

And that's when I realised. The thing I couldn't stand about Juvia - more so than her obsessive behaviour – was the way she hero-worshipped me. She either hid from me or relentlessly complimented me, never actually speaking to me like a human being.  
That was, until today. And if I was being honest with myself, I'd admit that I liked speaking to her.

Even when she attacked me with a brutal hug in that moment, the rain gradually clearing up, I didn't feel the same disgust I usually would. I mean, I still shoved her off me from sheer embarrassment, but the smile I gave to her was genuine.

I didn't approach her today because I felt sorry for her. It wasn't because I particularly liked her, either, obviously. I approached her because I saw her lonely eyes in the mirror every day since Ur was captured by the police.  
And I knew that it was my fault that happened.

But I didn't want to think about that right now.

"Juvia, you need to tell the others the truth about your magic. It could totally come in handy during a fight. And if they complain about the rain, you could just-" I stopped when my eyes caught parts of Juvia's body becoming liquid. She seemed unaware of it herself; her eyes were locked on my face.

In the next moment, I felt an excruciating pain on the lower left side of my abdomen.

 **Natsu POV - Monday**

I took a brief look at Lucy's phone over her shoulder and snorted.

"Jheez Luce, it's just a few hours of school missed. No biggie!" I grinned and walked to the other side of the clearing to retrieve my backpack.  
Funny. I don't remember leaving it open?

Shrugging my observation off, I turned around to Lucy again, only to see she'd become white as a sheet, still staring at her phone. Come on, was she really getting so worked up over missing school?

Nah, Lucy wasn't the type to freak out over something so small, right? Her eyes finally left her phone to land on me, and when I saw the intense worry in her entire expression, I knew something was very wrong.

"The texts. Look at the texts" she croaked, prompting me to sprint towards her.

I grabbed her phone, attention focusing on the first few words of her most recent texts which were visible on the lockscreen. I'd only just finished reading them when the phone flashed with a 'low battery' signal and died.

My response was immediate. I grabbed Lucy's wrist and bolted off in the direction I knew the school to be in. I needed to find the others and ask just what the fuck happened.

Damn it, Gray, Juvia. They'd better be ok.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

"We're here! We're all right!" Lucy shouted as we burst into the cafeteria. We decided on the way here that we should let the others know first and foremost that we were okay before focusing on more pressing matters.

We sweatdropped when 100 faces turned towards us, not one of them belonging to our Saturday detention club.  
"Pfft, you guys are shit at ditching." some dude whose name I never bothered to remember muttered, before everyone turned back to their conversations.

I was forcibly dragged out of the room by Lucy when I started rolling my sleeves up, raring for a fight.  
"Natsu, where are they? What if they're out searching for us?" the blonde asked quickly.

I put my hand up to quieten her, sniffing the air for their scents.  
The fact that I was ravenous and right next to the cafeteria was not helping my focus.

"Got it" I muttered once I'd picked up their scents; Erza, Gajeel, Lisanna, Levy and Gildarts' scents seemed to be coming from the same area, meaning that they were most likely together right now.

I heard Lucy half-heartedly ask "got what?" before sighing and following me.

When I finally got to the place I could smell their scents the strongest, annoyance overtook me as I slammed the door open.  
"What the hell are you guys doing in my room?" I asked, glaring at them.

"Why the hell didn't you bother to pay attention to your damn phone, bastard?" Gajeel instantly jumped up, a dark aura surrounding him.  
I was about to punch him for calling me that, but I stopped myself when I realised he had a point. I'd left my phone in my dorm room to avoid distractions from training, but in hindsight it was a stupid thing to do.  
And because of it, I was unable to help my friends in their hour of need.  
Not that Gray was my friend or anything.

"We're here! We're all right!" Lucy panted, finally having caught up with me.  
"Yeah, no kidding." Levy responded, a sly smile on her face. That confused me. I thought they'd be way more pleased to find out that we were safe…

"Natsu! Lushy!" Happy greeted us, however I could see the same sly smile on his face that Levy had. Come to think of it, Lisanna had that expression as well. What was up with them?  
"Hey buddy! Did you get lost last night or something?" I asked the exceed as he flew onto my shoulder.

"Sorry Natsu, I got a little distracted." Happy grinned, not looking sorry at all. Damn him and his crush on that white exceed. "I did try to find you when you didn't come back by midnight, but you and Lucy-"  
The blue cat was cut off when said blonde leapt through the air with agility I had never seen her use before, grabbed him and covered his mouth.

"Nothing! We were doing nothing. Sorry for not answering my phone, guys." Lucy gushed nervously, her face going all red.  
"Gihi, I don't think this was nothing, bunny girl." Metal face grabbed a photo on my desk, holding it up.

"What the fu-"  
"WHERE THE FUCK DID YOU GET THAT, YOU PERVERTS?" Lucy screamed over me, attempting to grab the photo whilst Gajeel held it above his head, out of her reach.

The photo was of me and Lucy sleeping in that clearing. And yeah, maybe I felt my face heat up when the picture revealed just how close we were to one another.  
Dear god, this was confusing. When I was ranting about how I was her best friend, not Gajeel, the last part I'd let slip out was a total accident. That tends to happen to me a lot when I talk about something I'm passionate about – my mouth starts moving on its own by instinct, much like my body does when I'm fighting.

I was about to say that I loved her.

And of course I did. She was my friend. A very close one. And I love all my friends. So why did I feel the need to abruptly stop myself from saying it? Why did it make me so nervous?  
I'd asked myself that a lot last night, but decided to just drop it. I'd figure it out soon enough, probably.

"Hey, I'm not a pervert! It serves you and Natsu right for not coming home last night. You guys liiiiiiiiiike each other." Happy teased Lucy, making her give up her attempts to get the photo to swat him instead.  
"Ohh, so that's why my bag was open this morning. You took my camera to take the picture!" I smiled at Happy, proud of myself for working that out.

" _That's_ all you have to say about this?" Lucy asked me incredulously.  
"I don't see the big deal." I shrugged. "We talked and fell asleep. At least Happy let everyone know we were okay."  
"It's just that… the picture… ugh, fine." Lucy grudgingly accepted my reasoning, deciding to glare at the blue exceed rather than attack him.

"I am glad you two are no longer on bad terms." Erza gave us a small smile.  
"However, you acted selfishly last night. We formed this group of mages so that we could trade information and protect each other. I am disappointed, Lucy and Natsu, that you have failed to do so." She scolded. This was a new version of scary Erza. And it was much worse because I knew I couldn't run away from it.

"Erza, that's a little harsh, they didn't know-"  
"It's okay, Lisanna. Erza's right." I interrupted the white-haired girl, hanging my head in shame.  
"It won't happen again, I promise." Lucy added quietly. "Before my phone died, I saw some of the messages you guys sent me. Juvia and Gray… what happened to them?" she asked.

I heard Gildarts sigh from the corner of the room.  
"Gray barely managed to call me late last night. He and Juvia were attacked by another monster and managed to kill it, however they were severely injured as a result." The teacher informed us gravelly.

I choked, unable to ask all the questions running through my head. I could feel my fists shaking with anger and guilt. No wonder everyone was so angry Lucy and I hadn't been there to help.

"I contacted everyone in the group to gather where the monster had attacked. The two of them were unconscious when we got there. Luckily though, we had our resident healer with us." Gildarts smiled, and I felt some of my worry melt away.

"Wendy's really amazing. I thought they were goners until she arrived." Levy commented.  
"The squirt tired herself out, though, so she skipped school today. Her cat's with her in bunny girl's room." Gajeel added.

"We're visiting Gray and Juvia later in hospital to find out the details on what happened; Cana's keeping us notified on how they're doing. Since Wendy managed to sort out all the major injuries, they should be out soon" When Lisanna said this, I almost sunk to the ground in relief.

Trust ice head and that water girl to defy the odds like that.

But at the back of my mind, the addition of another monster on top of the ones we'd already faced made me unable to relax fully.  
By the sound of it, this monster must have attacked the two of them when their guard was down.

Would we ever be able to relax?

* * *

 **A/N: if I was basing this fic on arcs, I'd say that this arc is nearly drawing to a close. Calm before the storm, guys. Calm before the storm.**

 **Sorry to all those people who thought Natsu was going to intentionally confess to Lucy; I do after all feel the need to keep everyone in character. I feel really bad but I promise the proper Nalu will come soon!**

 **cmo ratchet: thank you and I appreciate you taking the time to comment on individual chapters! Yeah I agree it was quite lazy of me but in my defence, it's revealed later on that Levy dabbles in replication magic. I'm glad you're enjoying the story though!**

 **Aaah I love reading all the reviews I receive, thank you guys so much! Ideally I would like to thank you all individually but that would be kinda impractical; I've sort of made a rule where I reply to people who ask questions or give constructive criticism etc, and then add a general thank you afterwards.**

 **-usnoozulose**


	17. Chapter 17

**Gray POV**

"You shouldn't have injured yourself to protect me, you know" I muttered once Cana left the room to find a bar which would serve her.  
Considering this was a hospital, I figured she'd be searching for a while.

Juvia, who was lying in the bed across the room, turned her head to look at me.  
"If Juvia hadn't solidified herself, Gray would have been hurt more by the monster."

We called this new monster a Spiner because it fired sharp spines from its back, sort of like a porcupine. But these spines weren't like needles; they were more like swords when it came to thickness.

Needless to say, they hurt like a bitch.

"That doesn't justify you trying to be a human shield" I spat.  
When I noticed Juvia flinching at my tone, I attempted to reel in some of my anger by taking deep breaths.

"I'm sorry. And thank you, I guess." After all, she'd saved my life.

 _I hadn't been expecting a monster to some out of nowhere. I realise now that Juvia's rain probably drowned out the sound of the monster approaching, even though it was gradually getting lighter at the time. And my attention may have been a little too focused on Juvia for me to notice the monster._

 _The first spine went straight through Juvia's body and punctured mine.  
Juvia took one look at me and solidified her body, only for another spine to sink into her back. I could see from the way her eyes widened that she was in as much pain I was in._

 _That spine would've hit my heart had it gone through her._

 _The adrenaline running through my veins finally kicked in.  
"Ice make, shield!" I yelled just in time, breathing heavily as the sound of multiple projectiles hitting the shield resonated through my ears. _

_I didn't have to see the thing's eyes to know that this was one of those monsters from the concentration camp. After all, what else could it have been?_

 _I looked at Juvia, expecting to find her in a panic. But the girl in front of me was not the same one she'd been 20 seconds ago.  
She was staring at my injury, her head hanging lopsided on her neck, while her eyes bulged with insanity. _

_"Juvia?" I asked, wondering if she'd gone crazy.  
"The monster hurt my Gray." She growled. Suddenly, every rain drop in the air just… stopped. It was as if gravity no longer affected them. Juvia raised her head to smile at me._

 _All I could do was stare in awe.  
Yeah. She'd gone crazy._

"Don't do it again." I ordered sternly, shaking the flashback out of my head.

"But Juvia would do anything to protect Gray."

"Don't fucking say things like that." I couldn't help snapping at her. I would not let her go down the same path Ur went down. I refused.

"Why won't Gray allow Juvia to protect him?" she asked, sounding hurt.

"Because the last person who protected me fucking _died_ because of it."  
When I was angry, I was extremely prone to word vomit. You know, uncontrollable speaking. It helped when insulting that lava ass, but there were other times like this where I would blurt out things I just didn't want to bring up.

Juvia just lay there, silent for a while. I was thankful she hadn't tried to pry.

"But yesterday Gray protected Juvia as well. She did not die."

I stayed silent. She didn't understand. Of course she wouldn't understand; I hadn't told her what happened. She would be disgusted if she knew.

But isn't that what she said about her past and her magic?  
I realised with a jolt that I owed her for telling me that stuff. It sure as hell hadn't been easy for her to bring it all up again.  
After yesterday, and after I snapped at her today, I guess she deserved to know.

"When I was younger, I was too proud of my magic to understand that I had to hide it. I ignored my mentor's warnings and ran off to show my friends. I didn't realise the royal guard were just around the corner."

Oh god, what I wouldn't do to have Lucy's musical spirit soothing my emotions right now.

"I started using my magic in the open for everyone to see. The royal guard obviously saw it, knew instantly that it wasn't natural and started searching for the culprit. And Ur just stood in front of me. I hadn't even realised that she'd followed me there. Since the ice shapes and snow were coming from my direction, they assumed it was her who did it."

She'd willingly taken the blame for my stupidity.

"The last thing I saw from her was a smile as they took her away. I shouted at the guards to stop, told them it was my fault, but they didn't listen."

Ultear and Leon, my siblings, couldn't look me in the eye after that day.  
They entirely disowned me in their grief when Ur's ashes arrived at the doorstep a few years later.  
And I didn't blame them. Not one bit.

"Juvia is sorry for Gray's loss." Her calm voice reached me through my melancholy thoughts.  
"Juvia thinks… no, knows that Gray is not to blame for the way mages are treated. All we can do is protect the ones we love. So, Juvia will continue to protect Gray."

"But I-"

"Ur did not regret protecting her student, Juvia is sure. Ur would have regretted letting Gray get taken away if she had not protected you."

Before I could reply, a sudden loud noise came from the door as it burst open, allowing a large group of people to fall through.  
I sweatdropped when I saw the face of the first person who made his way in, screaming at the top of his lungs about how he won the race.

"This is a hospital, flame head! Quiet the fuck down or I'll kick you out, injuries and all!" I yelled.

Was it me, or did everyone present sigh in relief when I insulted Natsu? Of course, it probably would've been a clear sign that something was very wrong if I hadn't called him a name at first sight.

"Oh please, I could get all of my limbs amputated and still be able to beat your icy ass!"

After a brief fight with that total moron, which Erza promptly stopped, Juvia and I were milked for every piece of information we had on what happened yesterday.

"Your ice shield definitely sounds useful against that thing. How did you take it out, though?" Gildarts asked.  
"Yeah, and how did you get all those other injuries?" Gajeel added.

"We couldn't get a clear shot at the Spiner from behind the shield, and we eventually started running low on magic. So, Juvia suggested that we combine our remaining magic so we could take it down in one blow, only leaving us exposed for a short amount of time." I explained.

"Gray grabbed Juvia's hand, and he was so dreamy as he stared into Juvia's eyes-"

She was interrupted by the sound of me choking, mortified at her description.

"Wait, you guys are saying you performed a successful unison raid?" Cana asked, looking surprised. Or drunk. I couldn't tell the difference.

"Unison raid?" Lucy asked, looking as perplexed as I was.

"It's where two mages with highly compatible magic combine their magic into one attack. It's a difficult thing to do." Levy informed us.

"Juvia and Gray are compatible?" oh god, I could practically see the hearts in Juvia's eyes when she said that. I was glad when nobody bothered to pay her any attention.

"Anyway, we did that unison raid thing and erm… it took us a lot longer than we expected." I confessed, not able to forget the agony of being hit with several of those spines at the same time. Juvia had all but run out of magic at that point, too, so she couldn't avoid it.

I clenched my fist when I remembered my brief time of consciousness after we'd taken out the spiner.

 _Blood was splattered on the ground. I called Juvia's name but she could barely even keep her eyes open as we lay severely injured, unable to let go of each other's hand.  
I couldn't help her. My phone was my lifeline. Thank fuck I'd put Gildarts as my speed dial._

"Well, we're all glad you're okay now. It's a good thing you guys were together when it happened." Lisanna smiled at us, and I nodded my head in agreement.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

 **Lucy POV**

"It's okay Mira, just show them. Nobody's going to judge you!"

Saturday detention again. Other than the events on Monday, things have been refreshingly uneventful. Gray and Juvia got out of the hospital, Levy and Gajeel couldn't stop bickering (trust me, it was the same as flirting for them so it was a good thing) and Natsu and I were closer than ever.

Levy gave out the replicated celestial keys, which I wouldn't have been able to differentiate from my own keys had it not been for the magic I felt from my ones. My blue haired friend was definitely something special.

After that, Lisanna promptly introduced her sister to the group, and was now convincing an unexpectedly shy Mira to show the others her magic.

"Perhaps if we demonstrated our magic first, you would be more comfortable showing us?" Erza asked the white-haired girl kindly.  
"Yeah, the freakier the better. Gajeel, we're looking at you." I smirked at the iron dragon slayer who, for the last week, hadn't stopped teasing me about that picture Happy took of me and Natsu.  
Payback, asshole.

"Bunny girl..." his eyes and voice suggested danger but I smugly noticed that he was struggling to come up with a suitable retort. Ha.

"That's a great idea! Gajeel, do the metal scale thing." Lisanna suggested enthusiastically, unaware of the rusty girder's seething.  
Eventually, with a sigh, he coated his entire body with iron scales, becoming an almost robotic version of himself.

"Need any more examples or are you all set?" Cana slung her arm around Mira, who was looking wide-eyed at Gajeel.  
Then, to my surprise, her face lit up with a smile.  
Then again, maybe it wasn't so surprising. After all, it must be a relief to know you really aren't alone.

"As much as I would love to see everyone's magic, I think I'm okay showing mine now."  
And with that, she lifted up her arm to reveal to the others what she'd shown me.

There was a collective gasp when everyone felt the magical pressure emanating off her transformed arm.

"Whoa that totally looks like a demon arm!" Natsu tactlessly commented, grinning. I briefly debated summoning Virgo to bury him deep, deep underground.  
Luckily, Mira pleasantly surprised me yet again by simply smiling sweetly at the fiery hot head.

"I wonder what damage I could do with it." she was still smiling, but something about her tone of voice made Natsu cower and sent shivers down my spine.  
Mental note: don't get on Mira's bad side. She may be a demon in disguise.

"Well, Mirajane, we look forward to fighting alongside you." Erza cheerily announced; I suppose she'd take an immediate liking to anyone who could put Natsu in his place.

"Have you ever considered transforming the rest of your body?" Gildarts asked, looking deep in thought.  
When Mira shook her head, he continued, "Well, that will be your training regime from now on. I trust Lisanna has told you of the dangers us mages are facing nowadays?"

"Yes, she has. Is everyone else doing something similar to train?" Mira asked.  
"That's what we're going to discuss today, actually. I'm going to take all of you brats to the side individually to do so, so come up when I call you." The teacher ordered, earning agreements from everyone in the detention. It was funny; he seemed a lot more like a teacher here than during actual school hours.

Natsu was called up first, leaving the rest of us to talk amongst ourselves.  
"So Mira, what do you think?" I asked.  
"I think Gruvia, Gajevy and Nalu." she beamed. I had to remind myself of the demon version of her to prevent me from slapping her out of her shipping fantasies.

"I meant the detention group, not your pointless ships." I spat, my face turning red.  
"But Lucy, your blush suggests that Nalu is not pointless at all!" Okay, now she was just teasing me.

"I'll have you know that I am NOT blushing, I'm just angry." I crossed my arms and glared at her.  
"Sorry to interrupt you guys, but Mira, have you talked to Elfman recently?" Lisanna inquired.

"That's okay, Lisanna. Elfman's your brother, right?" I asked, and the two girls nodded.  
"I haven't been able to get into contact with him, actually. The last thing I got from him was a letter about his new girlfriend." I could see the excitement in Mira's eyes when she said this, however there was a hint of worry there.

"You don't think he could be a mage, do you?" Lisanna asked.  
"That's what I was thinking. That man needs to pick up his phone once in a while." Mira said, a small smile playing at her lips when she said the word 'man'.  
"Yeah, it's so un-manly of him to ignore us like that." Lisanna added, making both sisters erupt in laughter.

Before I could ask what on earth was so funny, I heard Gildarts calling my name.  
"Lucy! You're up next."

"So what can I do to train?" I asked once I'd approached him.  
"According to Loke, you've already been training a lot. Does it tire you, keeping his gate open for so long?" the teacher asked.

"It used to, but these days it's sort of become natural for me. I only really feel a strain when he starts fighting."  
Gildarts thought over this for a bit before talking again.

"Honestly, yours is a magic I'm not at all equipped to suggest stuff for. But have you ever tried calling out two spirits at once?" He asked.  
Now it was my turn to think over what he'd just said.

"My mother never really got a chance to explain things beyond summoning the spirits." I started, and he nodded understandingly. "But I have a spirit who could tell me whether that's possible."

"Then my suggestion is that you ask your spirits for ways to expand your magic. You could also try sparring with the others if-" he stopped and chuckled at my horrified expression. "Okay, maybe sparring with these guys isn't for you." He grinned, gesturing at the blur that was Gajeel, Loke, Natsu and Gray fighting each other.

"Thank you Gildarts, I'll make sure to summon them tonight." I promised, realising how lucky we were to have this amazing teacher who was taking the time to help us all survive this ordeal.

"Oh and Lucy?" he abruptly stopped me from taking my leave.  
"Yeah?"  
"Have you figured out what you're going to do if you get caught?" The teacher asked seriously.

I gave him a grin that looked more confident than I felt.  
"I've got something up my sleeve that doesn't require my keys but…" my composure wavered, "it's not exactly an easy spell to cast."

Gildarts simply stared at me, frowning a little.  
"We'll keep thinking of something. That's all, Lucy." Was all he said before I went to resume my conversation with the two platinum-haired sisters.

But in my peripheral vision, I noticed a certain white exceed staring at me, holding her head.  
"Carla? What's wrong?" I heard Wendy ask, prompting me to approach the two of them.  
"Sorry if my spirits made you miss out on your sleep last night. They don't really have a day and night concept in the spirit world." I apologised.

Carla had been looking at me weirdly ever since this morning and I was pretty sure it had to do with Horologium crashing out of nowhere to save me from whatever was distressing me, waking us all up in the process. I didn't really want to tell the others I'd just had a particularly bad nightmare, so I sent him back.  
I don't think I'd be able to put up with Carla's scolding.

"No, no, it's fine. I just have a headache, Wendy. Nothing to worry about." She said it all too fast. I gave her a sceptical look, but she responded by avoiding my gaze.

I was either being overly paranoid or… Carla was keeping something from me.

* * *

 **A/N: I hope this didn't seem like too much of a filler chapter.**

 **Quick recap of the monsters:  
Raven – black panther-like monster  
Pheonix – the name says it all  
Spiner – porcupine-like monster. I would've called it a porcupine but for some reason that word just somehow took away from the danger factor I was trying to portray. I mean, porcupines are adorable.**

 **Also, I've started writing a new multi-chapter fanfic, and will probably release it within the next few days. It's not an AU and it has to do with the whole E.N.D. theory, with my own twist on it. I feel like I have to release it soon though, otherwise Mashima will reveal the real story of E.N.D. and it'll sort of invalidate my story in a way.  
It's kinda angsty so far and it includes an OC as the main character, so I'm aware it probably won't be as popular as this story. But alas, I will write for the art.**

 **Thank you guys so much for the reviews! Keep 'em coming, they really make my day.**

 **-usnoozulose**


	18. Chapter 18

"RISE AND SHINE, LUCY!"

I cracked open an eye, bracing myself for the opening of my curtains which would blind me with the dazzling morning light.

"Oh my god, you go to sleep so early." The same voice muttered, sounding slightly slurred.

I glanced at my alarm clock, yawning, wondering what the voice was on about.  
10 PM?

"Why the fuck did you say rise and shine if it's not even morning?" I groaned, pushing my duvet away to sit up.  
"Ooooooh, someone's not a night person." The voice teased, before some clothes were thrown at my face.

"Put those on, they have a vibe that says 'I'm single and very slutty', they're perfect!"

Every trace of sleepiness instantly left my body as I gawked disbelievingly at the person who had _broken into my room_.  
"CANA!" I spluttered, finally coming to my senses.

"Honestly, you girls are setting an awful example for Wendy!" Carla reprimanded, approaching the awakened blue-haired dragon slayer.  
"But I'm not-"  
"Come on Lucy, everyone's going out drinking tonight. It'll be fun!" Cana interrupted me, grinning.

I considered it. After everything that's been going on, losing my mind in a giddy haze sounded so good right now. But would it really be a smart thing to do-

"Mira said if you come, you get tomorrow morning off work." Cana stated.  
She cackled with laughter when I instantly started getting dressed. No way was I passing up on this win-win situation.

"Wendy, Carla, you'll be okay here by yourselves, right? Remember to call us if anything happens." I advised to the half-asleep girl and her exceed as I grabbed my keys, ready to go.  
"Yes, have fun!" Wendy beamed before falling back onto her pillow. I turned to Carla, only to find her giving me the same perplexing look she'd been adorning earlier today.

With a shrug, I left the dorms, excitedly following Cana into the heart of Magnolia.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Two Malibu oranges and 6 vodka shots bought with Cana's fake ID later, I was definitely feeling it.  
Holy fuck, was I feeling it. So much so that my vision was blurring, making me see several images of everything in my line of sight.

"Natsuuuuu why didn't I take maths at college? I can't-" I paused to hiccup, giggling, "can't count all of you!"  
I laughed at how hilarious I was, and when I paused to look at Natsu's uncomfortable expression, I laughed again, hugging him. He was so warm…  
I grinned at Levy, the only person present who shared my laughter.

"PAHAHAHA hey, hey, Gajeel?" she got the reluctant iron dragon slayer's attention by shoving her empty shot glass in front of his face.  
"Do- do you" she slurred, trying to control her laughter, "do you have all those metal piercings in case you want a snack for later?" her high-pitched giggles reached every corner of the pub we were in.

Nobody attempted to hide their chortles at Gajeel's expense.  
"No, but I keep you around so that I look taller by comparison, shrimp." He retorted, smirking when Levy pouted.

"I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!" everyone's heads snapped up to witness Erza screaming at a terrified bar-tender.  
"I'm s-sorry Miss b-but I can't-" he stuttered, backing away.  
"HOW DARE YOU NOT SERVE STRAWBERRY CAKE-"

"Come on, Erza, I promise you free cake tomorrow at Fairy Tail." Mira soothed, carefully pulling the seething re-equip mage back to the table.  
"Where is Gray? I was going to give him the recipe for my chilled cheesecake dessert." Erza instantly demanded, eyeing us all angrily as if we'd kidnapped Gray.

"He went after Juvia when she ran away bawling about how much she loves waterfalls or something. Light weights, every one of you." Cana snickered, downing her seventeenth shot. If I had the capacity to think logically, I would probably be worried about her getting alcohol poisoning.  
But I was just so warm…

"Hey Lucy, you look like you're overheating. Are you okay?" Lisanna asked, putting her cold hand on my forehead.  
"Crap, she's too hot." She observed, sounding worried.

"Hot damn." I whispered, giggling at how hilarious I was yet again.  
"Luce, let go of me. It's too hot in here and my body temperature isn't helping you." Natsu attempted to pry off my vice-like grip.  
When he failed due to the alcohol in his system making his movements sloppy, he face-palmed.

"She's wasted." He groaned.  
"Take her outside and give her some water, she'll be fine in no time." Mira suggested, handing Natsu a water bottle she'd fished out of her bag. Damn, that girl was prepared for anything.

After some half-assed complaining on Natsu's part, he gave me a piggy-back ride out of the pub.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

An hour later, Natsu and I were lying down in the park, stargazing. I had to stop myself from bringing up what happened the first time we'd done this.

"Holy shit, did I need that water." I commented, breaking the silence.  
"So you're not piss drunk anymore?" Natsu asked, smirking.  
"Well, my brain's a lot clearer, that's for sure. I could probably walk home without you carrying me." I rolled my eyes when Natsu let out a sigh of relief.

We were silent once more until I shivered, condemning my stupidity for not bringing a coat again.

"You're cold? You can use my body heat again now that you don't smell so much of alcohol-"  
"No way! Do you even remember what happened the last time we… you know…" I cried, interrupting Natsu's offer; no way was I giving those perverts another opportunity to take weird photos of us again.

"Now that's the Lucy I know. Welcome back to the land of the sober." Natsu grinned.  
"Half sober, more like." I corrected, still feeling the alcohol buzz.  
When I shivered again, however, he frowned a bit.  
Then, without a second thought, he unwrapped the white scarf from around his neck and handed it to me.

I didn't move to take it from him.  
"I… I don't think I've ever seen you without that scarf on." I observed, surprised at how I'd never registered that before.  
"Yeah well, just take it." he encouraged, turning his face away from me.

Willing my hands not to shake (they were just shivering from the cold, right?), I took his scarf, handling it with as much delicacy as Natsu did.  
When I wrapped it around my own neck, it felt like a warm embrace. I snuggled into it, breathing in the pleasant scent of campfires and newly blown-out candles.

"Thank you." I breathed out, beaming at the dragon slayer next to me.  
"It's not like I'm giving it to you or anything. I'm just lending it." as much as he was trying to sound nonchalant, I heard the smile in his voice.

"It's special to you, isn't it?" I asked, still soaking up the heat from the item of clothing.  
"Yeah. Igneel gave it to me before he disappeared,"

I nodded in understanding, glancing at Natsu to observe how bare his neck looked without the scarf.

"Thank you." I said again, without a particular reason.  
I had so much to thank this boy for, really. But right now, I just felt incredibly touched that he'd lent his most invaluable possession to me.

In that moment, a sudden rush of emotions threatened to overwhelm me.

Admiration for his strength, both physical and emotional.  
Gratitude for… just everything.  
Empathy for what he'd gone through.  
Fear for what may come in the future.  
Content that he was in my life.  
Comforted at the idea of us sticking together.  
Awareness of our proximity.  
… Attraction.

Love?

But it was different this time. An entirely new wholesome feeling filled me, making me want to laugh and cry and sing and shout all at the same time.  
This new feeling was a part of me that I found myself desperately wanting to share with the boy sitting next to me.

Love beyond friendship…

No way.

No fucking way did I just admit that to myself.  
My eyes widened and my throat felt dry.  
Who knew just thinking those few words would cause my body to internally explode?

"I know I'm dazzling and everything, but you're stargazing in the wrong direction." Natsu smirked, raising his eyebrows.  
"You look weird without your scarf." I quickly covered, looking away from him and rejoicing at the miracle that my voice sounded somewhat casual.

I mean, it wasn't every day that you realise that you're in love with your best friend.

Considering my stomach was doing backflips while the voices in my head were screaming at me for not realising it sooner, I was pulling off my cool façade quite well.  
My cheeks weren't about to burn off my face or anything. Nope.

Oh my god. What do I even do with this realisation?  
 _Think about it in the morning, Lucy. You're drunk and probably over-reacting or something._  
But who knew when I'd feel this impulsive and confident again? Maybe I should do something about it now?  
 _That's the alcohol talking._  
Shut up.  
 _Quit overthinking and get over yourself.  
_ How am I even supposed to feel about this? Happy?  
 _You shouldn't even like him in the first place, you've only known him for a few months!_

"Holy shit, they've switched personalities!" Gray shouted, unexpectedly right in front of me, interrupting the fight between my drunk and sober opinions.  
"Ahh, so this is where you guys ran off to?" Lisanna commented, sitting next to me.  
"Watcha on about, Gray?" Cana asked.

Shaking my head out of the confuddled daze I'd just been in, I looked around to see that our entire group had arrived, and were sitting down one by one to stargaze with Natsu and I.

Meanwhile, I was trying to manually slow down my heart rate. No prizes for guessing how well that was going.

"Flame head is just stargazing all quietly without destroying anything or being an annoying little shit-"  
"Oi! I can be quiet when I feel like it!" Natsu interrupted.  
"-And Lucy's wearing his muffler and has the same constipated look Lava brain has when he's thinking really hard in history class-"  
"Hey! I do not look constipated!" I retorted, whacking Gray over the head.

"And she just attacked me! I'm telling you, they've switched places or something!" Gray was falling back dramatically, but I could see the hint of humour in his eyes.

"I think everyone's still a tad drunk." Mira commented with a tinkling laugh.  
"Ooh! Ooh I know, let's play a game!" Lisanna playfully cheered.

Yes, a distraction is what I needed!

"Pfft, games are for kids." Gajeel grunted.  
"You're just scared that you'll lose to me, rust bucket!" Natsu challenged him, standing up.

I felt myself breathe easier as the distance between us increased.  
As a fight broke out, I racked my brains trying to think of a game where I could be by myself to think for a bit.

"How about hide and seek? No going beyond the town centre?" I suggested, silencing everyone.  
"Juvia thinks it would be unwise to split up." the water mage spoke up, and from her serious tone I knew her advice had nothing to do with being separated from Gray.

I sighed loudly, accepting the fact that I'd just have to deal with my confused thoughts in my drunk state.

"We'd be able to smell a monster approaching the town centre no problem, right iron face? They have this weirdly strong smell… like magic, but artificial. Like, you know, when you can smell the difference between home-cooked soup and something that came out of a can?" Natsu gushed excitedly, his endearing childishness making me smile.  
With a nod, Gajeel added, "yeah, this area is small enough to keep track of."

"Interesting. How do you suppose you'd contact everyone if you were to sniff out a monster, though?" Erza enquired, the alcohol in her system making it sound more like an accusation.

"I can send up a flare with my fire; people would just write it off as a flare gun." Natsu grinned. Everyone then turned expectedly to Gajeel, who smirked arrogantly.

"Finally, doing chemistry A-level is actually useful for once." He said, reaching into his pocket. "I was saving it for a prank, but this is perfect. You guys ever seen iron react with a halogen vapour? When the oxidation states change, there's this vigorous reaction-"  
"Skip the science lesson and spit it out." Erza ordered, losing patience.

"Tch, I was getting to that. Anyway, if I send this-" He held up a test tube labelled _'condensed chlorine'_ , "-into the air with some iron wool, it'll burn and cause something like a flare." He informed us, pride evident in his voice.

For a moment, everyone just gawked at the seemingly too-cool-for-school teenager.

"Oh my god, you're actually smart!" Levy shouted in disbelief, pointing at the iron dragon slayer.  
"Oi, you don't have to sound so surprised!" Gajeel barked.  
"I-I'm sorry, I d-didn't mean-" Levy stuttered, still in shock as the tall dark-haired boy glared at her.

"So we're all set to play hide and seek, then?" Mira interrupted, professionally swerving the conversation away from yet another fight.  
"One more thing – the dragon slayers can't be seekers because they would have an unfair advantage." I suggested quickly.

After everyone agreed, I was chosen as the first seeker since I suggested the game.  
Perfect.

Walking with a slight stumble, I yelled at everyone to go hide before leaning my face against a wall to count to 60.  
But clearing my head was proving a difficult thing to do with Natsu's presence clinging to my neck.

"Hey Natsu!" I called towards him, making his retreating figure come to a complete stop.  
"Lucyyyy it hasn't been 60 seconds yet-"  
"You can have your scarf back now, I'm not cold anymore" I lied, running up to the pink-haired boy.

Just as my fingers started untangling the white cloth from my neck, a warm hand stopped my movements.

"Nah, it suits you. You can give it back when you find me, yeah?" He grinned, still practically holding my hand.  
"O-okay then." I choked out, cursing the effect his actions were having on my heart.

Things were going to get so complicated if I couldn't be comfortable around my best friend.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

10 minutes of searching, and not the slightest hint of anyone. I did, however, scare the life out of a nice old woman who just happened to have the same height and hairstyle as Lisanna.  
Note to self: do not initiate piggy back rides on your friends without making sure it's them first.

This time, however, did allow me to think.  
I mean, so what if I loved Natsu? I had no doubt that he would stick by me through thick and thin, even if it was just as friends.  
Would he love me back? Probably not. Not that I have a low self-esteem or anything; he just doesn't seem like the type.

And what will I do about it?  
Well, first, get sober enough to practise self-restraint.  
Then, treat him like a friend, like I usually do. It wouldn't be fair on him to just be petty and avoid him.  
Maybe it would be worth it, just to stay by his side. Or would it be too… painful?

What if he met someone else who he would learn to love like I loved him?

I chuckled lightly to myself when the words 'Love rival' went through my head. Maybe I had more in common with Juvia than I thought… even if I was a tad less crazy.

"Lucy Heartfilia." I heard a voice call from behind me, interrupting my light-hearted thoughts.

I froze.

Nobody had called me that since…

 **Wendy POV**

"Lucy shouldn't have gone out tonight." Carla suddenly stated, waking me up yet again.  
I rose out of my bed to see the white exceed with large, terrified eyes staring into space.

"What's wrong, Carla?" Happy asked from beside her.  
"Happy? When did you get here?" I asked, getting out of bed to approach the two cats.

"Natsu ditched me to get drunk, so I came to find you two, but Carla was just… muttering to herself." Happy replied sadly, still looking worriedly at the white exceed.

"Carla? Have you had any sleep?" I asked, noticing the bags under her eyes.  
"We… we need to call someone." She stuttered, finally focusing her eyes on mine.  
"I don't know what's going on." I replied, at a loss of what to do. I'd never seen her act like this.

Carla simply took a deep breath, glancing at both me and Happy.  
"I don't know how I know, but Lucy's going to get taken by the royal guard tonight. We don't have time, we need to call someone-"  
"You're not making sense!" I uttered disbelievingly. But her tone… her eyes… her urgency… all sent shivers of dread down my spine.

It must've been a dream, right? She must have seen it in a dream.

"I know this is going to happen like I knew that phoenix was going to attack you!" she argued, breathing heavily, "If I hadn't seen that, I wouldn't have rushed to you to fly you away from it!"

I stared at her in shock, unable to process what she'd just said.

"You can see into the future?" Happy asked quietly.  
"I have these… visions. I've had them as long as I remember. I used to think they were hallucinations but then they started happening in real life…" she trailed off, frantically looking between me and Happy for signs of belief.

If she was telling the truth, wouldn't that mean Lucy was in danger?  
Carla would never lie. Not to me. Not about something like this.

The dread building up inside me suddenly formed a tight grip on my heart.

"I'll call Gildarts, he'll know what to do." I spoke with urgency as I grabbed my phone.  
"What if he doesn't believe it? We don't have time to convince anyone else, we need to find Lushy!" Happy surprised us both with his outburst. I watched as his paws shook and his expression reflected mine.

Without a second thought, I got up to put on a coat and prompted the two Exceeds to follow me outside. Normally, Carla would have chided me for going out so late, but these circumstances weren't normal. We had to help Lucy.

I decided to call my blonde sister-figure first as we ran into town.

"Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up…" I muttered desperately.  
"Hey, this is Lucy Ashley!"  
"Lucy! Are you-"  
"Sorry I missed your call, if it's important then just leave a voicemail and I'll get back to you as soon as possible!"

My heart skipped a beat when I realised it wasn't her; it was an automated message she'd recorded.

"She's not picking up her phone." I informed the others, my voice wavering.  
"Try Natsu, he'll believe you, no questions asked." Happy advised.

Just as I was about to make the call, though, I picked up the scent of iron.  
"Gajeel!" I called as I rounded to corner of a dark alleyway, only to see him pressed up against the wall.

"Shut it squirt, you're blowing my cover." He whispered, before blinking his eyes and looking down at me questioningly. "Wait… what're you doing out this late? Shouldn't you be-"

"There's no time for that, Lucy's in trouble!" I interrupted him, staring him down to let him know I was serious.  
His eyes widened upon seeing my resolve, and he sniffed the air.

"There's no monsters anywhere near here, bunny girl's fine." He commented sceptically. However, I noticed he hadn't completely written us off yet.  
"There's no time to explain how we know, but Lucy's going to get taken by the royal guard tonight. She's not picking up her phone, so I suggest you help her instead of questioning our motives." Carla announced aggressively.

Gajeel paused for a moment to take this all in. He kept a straight face, however with my enhanced hearing I could tell his heart rate was increasing. His breathing was on the edge of becoming uneven.  
He believed us.

He reached into his pocket, at the same time producing thin, curly pieces of iron from his hand.  
"You stay here and tell the others what's happening when they arrive; they're all in the town centre at the moment. I'm going to find bunny girl. Tell Salamander to do the same."

And with that, he shot the iron and test tube contents in the air, creating a notable blast of fire and red fumes. He then ran off, Happy choosing to follow him, leaving Carla and I alone.

"Lucy…" I whispered in the silence, fearing the worst.

 **A/N: will they get to her in time? Is she really in trouble? Who knows.**

 **As much as I hate cliffhangers myself, I love writing them and then getting a bombardment of panicked reviews. It's oddly satisfying to be honest, you guys should try it**

 **Sweet Melancholic: You learn something new every day, thanks!**

 **Thank you so much for all the reviews so far, literally all of them so far have been genuinely nice and helpful!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	19. Chapter 19

**Natsu POV**

I'll admit hiding was never my strong point, but there was no way I was going to be found before metal face and the icicle. I snickered to myself excitedly as the minutes ticked away, using my enhanced hearing to detect anyone who may be close by.

"This'll definitely show Lucy just how good of a ninja I am." I whispered to myself.

When I saw Gajeel's flare go off in the distance, though, I knew something was wrong. One quick sniff of the surroundings told me there were no monsters. Had they found a way to mask their scent? That would mean that people are getting attacked right now…

All competitive thoughts of the game left my mind as I bolted off towards the direction where the red fumes were still wavering.  
The winding maze of roads that made up the town centre had never bothered me until now. Ugh, if only I could just demolish the buildings in front of me to form a straight path!

"Iron breath? Happy?" I called out upon detecting their scents nearby, grinding to an abrupt halt.  
Why were they here? The flare was still several hundred metres away; the plan was for everyone to gather under it if there was trouble. So why was metal face so far away from it?

I turned into an alleyway with a daunting dead end, only to find the iron dragon slayer breathing heavily, staring at the floor, his fists shaking. Happy was just standing there, seemingly dead to the world as his back faced me.  
And was that… Lucy's scent which seemed to be mingled with loads of others?

"What happened? What's with the flare?" I asked them with urgency, a bad feeling rising up within me.

They turned to look at me, and I knew with a jolt that something was definitely wrong. Gajeel's limbs were switching between metal and skin as the dragon slayer lost control of his magic. His entire body was shaking with anger. Under different circumstances, I would've taken this opportunity to pick a fight with him to see who would win with him going all out.

But it was the unshed angry tears in his eyes which made me realise the worst had happened. I just didn't know what it was.

Happy, on the other hand, was letting the tears fall silently down his face, panic and defeat lingering in his expression.

"Did Wendy tell you?" Metal face avoided my question.  
"Wendy? What's she doing-"  
I paused when the pierced teenager let out a jagged sigh.

"Lucy's been taken by the royal guard. We were too late."

I barely registered his subsequent destruction of a wall as he punched it, letting his rage out. Hell, I didn't even stop to comment on how he'd used her real name for the first time ever.

The way this alleyway reeked of loads of people.  
They must've cornered her.  
Of course they were going to find her.  
There were freaking posters of her.  
She'd been taken.  
There was no way I'd let it stay that way.

I turned around, sprinting towards the main road. They would've driven away, right? And the game had only lasted 15 or 20 minutes. She couldn't be too far away. Her scent was hidden behind car fumes, but I'd still be able to find her. I had to.

People were calling my name from far behind me, but I didn't stop running.

 **Lucy POV**

"Lucy Heartfilia."

It couldn't be him. Not now.

"It seems we don't need to ambush the college dormitories to detain you, then."

Before I could find my voice, I heard several pairs of footsteps approaching me.  
Where had I heard this very noise before?  
My mind flashed back to the scene at the train station months ago, when I'd just crashed into the closing train door. I thought it was all over, until my hand was grabbed by the person I'd grown to love.  
Things had turned out okay that day.

But here, there was no train. There was nobody to help me. This alleyway was a dead end in more ways than one.

I couldn't fight my way out of this one alone.  
I couldn't play dumb like Gajeel told me to back in the janitor's closet, not when someone else who knew the truth was present.  
I realised with a wave of dread that I couldn't even do what Rob did with his spirits; I had too many to summon all at once.

I had to talk. I had to convince _him_ not to do this to his own daughter.

Biting back my urge to call him Jude, I finally spoke.  
"Father." I said, turning around to see at least a dozen guards flanking the tall blonde man, effectively trapping me here.

"You're no daughter of mine." His voice was dripping with unadulterated rage.  
I stepped back, feeling confusion swirling in with my panic.

Never did I expect him to talk to me like that. I mean sure, he disliked mages as much as the next person, but he'd never spoken of mages with such… contempt. His anger felt personal.  
But what had I done to him?

"I… I…" I stuttered. I hadn't anticipated how hard it would be to talk with so many unfriendly eyes staring at me.

"Take her. Before she has the chance to slowly drain the life out of anyone else." He demanded.

Whatever argument I had died in my throat when I felt the relentless grips of several guards rendering me unable to move.

This was it. There was no way out for me now.  
And yet, everything just seemed surreal. I should've been kicking, scratching, fighting my way out of this with everything I had.  
They were going to take my spirits away from me.  
 _I would never see my friends ever again._

But I'd been well and truly trapped, both physically and mentally by the hatred in my father's eyes.  
Why was he so convinced I'd killed someone, anyway?

I simply stared at him as I was led into an eerily dark police van.  
And what he said next was the final crack to the dam that was holding back my emotions.

"You deserve to rot for cursing and murdering your own mother."

Me? He thought I… killed her?  
Panic. Fear. They faded into background emotions as liquid fury flooded my veins. I instantly found my voice.

"HOW DARE YOU!" I screamed, surprising the guards around me with my delayed struggling.  
Now that the dam had been broken, there was no stopping the flood that followed.

"I didn't curse her! I loved her!" I was now sobbing as angry tears ran down my face. I couldn't stand being accused of that. They could accuse me of anything as long as it wasn't that.

I opened my mouth again to shout to the heavens of my innocence, but in the blink of an eye, everything went fuzzy. I couldn't find my voice anymore. Hell, I couldn't even feel where my throat was.

All I could feel was a pain at the back of my head.  
All I could see was a red flare in the far distance, before heavy doors closed all the light off, leaving me in the dark.

 **Wendy POV**

We eventually found them standing spaced out near the edge of the main road. Even as it was approaching 2am, there was an abundance of cars going in both directions.

Gajeel was staring at the ground. He acknowledged none of us as we passed him.  
Happy was next; his tear-stained eyes were locked on the person nobody knew how to approach.

With a deep breath, I walked forward alone, leaving the group of solemn, silent young adults behind me to approach my brother.

I didn't have to ask to know what had happened to Lucy. If Natsu was here, kneeling down on the floor, looking completely and utterly _lost_ , then she was already long gone.  
I know he would have done anything in his power to save her if he could.

Blinking away the tears in my eyes, I knelt down next to him, putting my hand on his shoulder.

"I need to find her." He stated, his voice shaking.  
"And _we're_ going to." I replied with resolve. "I'm not much of a fighter, but I will fight for this. I will fight for my family."

When he didn't reply, I continued to speak, hoping he was listening to me.  
"Look behind you, Natsu. Everyone's going to fight. And not just for Lucy, but for every mage being treated like this." The conviction in my voice surprised even me.

To my relief, he turned his head around to look at the others.  
The same mix of grief, anger and determination was set on everyone's face.

"But until we find a way to save her, Luce's going to be there, alone." He reminded us, panic lacing his voice as the words were left unsaid; we didn't know what would happen to her in the concentration camp.

"We must not discredit her."

Everyone turned to look at the scarlet-haired girl who had just issued the bold order.  
"Lucy is intelligent and strong, and I don't doubt her ability to survive in such a place in the time it would take for us to save her."

Erza. She'd already been through all of this, hadn't she? She had friends who'd been locked up for years. She would know better than any of us.  
And I honestly did believe in Lucy.  
This acknowledgement was enough to allow me to breathe a little easier.

But an uneasy feeling still gripped onto me. I doubted it would be leaving anytime soon.  
Because in the end, we were all just a bunch of kids.  
We were ready to fight, yes, but with all this talk about saving Lucy, we were ignoring the giant elephant in the room.

Not one of us had any clue how we were going to carry out the impossible rescue mission.

* * *

 **A/N: sometimes I get worried that some phrases I use may not be well understood by people globally. If that is the case, then don't hesitate to ask, or you could even google stuff I think. For the record, the elephant in the room is a metaphor.**

 **Anyway, I honestly have no excuse for how angsty this chapter was. This was a really sad chapter, but it's one I've been waiting to write since I started this story.  
If it makes you guys feel any better, you should totally remind yourselves of who's in the concentration camps. Maaaaaaybe Lucy will meet them… or not. I mean, those camps would have to be huge. What would be the odds, right?  
Okay, now I'm just baiting you guys. Have fun waiting for the next chapter!**

 **Sabrina-luna-potter: Jheez, you must want to murder me after this (your comment made me laugh though)**

 **Fanficlove2014: I actually came up with Levy's piercing joke a while ago and I've been looking for an opportunity to write it in for ages, so I'm glad you appreciated it. Thanks for the detailed review!**

 **Avian Royalty: Pahaha, what can I say? I live for the plot twists**

 **Thank you to everyone reviewing and following this story, you're all great!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: for the sake of the story, I've had to make up surnames for some of the characters because for some reason they don't have surnames. They are not original characters!  
I'll put a list of them up at the end of the chapter.**

 **I'm really sorry if it becomes confusing, but it probably won't be too important to the plotline if you don't know who's saying what.**

* * *

 **LUCY POV**

"It's been a while since we've had a newbie in our cage."

"Have you seen the number of new mages they've been bringing in recently? I wouldn't be surprised if they've run out of empty cages."

"Pfft, she'd better not take up too much space."

"Hey, that's rude! Besides, I think it'll be nice to have another girl in here."

There was a tight pressure around my head. Bandages, probably. The floor was hard and cold beneath me.  
I could barely listen in on the voices around me as my most recent memories flashed through my mind, resembling a nightmare.

The first move I made was to check if my keys were still in the belt pocket I'd bought for myself on a whim one day.  
No. No, of course they wouldn't be there. Knowing where I was, my keys were long gone.

Shaking, my hand moved up to my neck.  
I almost smiled when I still felt the soft material of Natsu's scarf still there. Despite where I was and what may come in the future, it provided an immense sense of comfort. I felt myself relax slightly.

"Holder magic, huh?" someone asked, standing over me.

I looked up at him questioningly. He had blonde hair and looked around the same age as me… and I could tell he wasn't a guard. Probably another mage, like me. How he knew what magic I used, though, I didn't know.

"You don't have these, so I guessed." He continued, holding up his arms to reveal uncomfortable-looking metal cuffs with red balls sticking out of them.

"Gramps doesn't have them either." Another boy with an incredibly angular face added, gesturing to someone out of my line of vision.  
I sat up, wincing due to the pain in my head.

After my eyes had adjusted to the dim lighting, what I saw was eerily similar to the cage in the images that plagued my sleep every night. While one side was just a wall of jagged rocks, the other side was blocked off by rusty metal railings. Through the railings I could see multiple other cages, as well as guards and exhausted-looking prisoners.

What hadn't been in my nightmares, though, were the people surrounding me; people who talked to me just like my friends did. People who were giving me small, understanding smiles, albeit looking slightly on-edge.  
My fear of being alone in this place instantly disappeared. I hadn't even been aware that that was one of the main reasons I was afraid of getting caught.

But, alas, the appalling reality of my situation finally came crashing down on me as I took in my surroundings. Tears fell from my eyes as the faces of every one of my spirits and friends drifted through my mind; the gut-wrenching loss of the life I'd had for those few months really hit hard.

"I'm s-sorry, I just-" I stuttered, still aware of the glances being cast my way.  
"It's okay, child. We know." the old man in the corner said softly. By the lack of cuffs on his arms, I assumed he was the holder mage that boy had referred to as 'gramps'.

The melancholy silence that followed was swiftly interrupted.

"If you want to keep that scarf of yours, I suggest you hide it, quick. There's a guard heading this way with the regulation clothes." A blue-haired boy with a face tattoo advised me, surprising me with his keen intuition. Had he really observed just from my initial movements that the item of clothing was special to me?

Moving surprisingly hastily considering the state I was in, I stumbled towards the jagged rocks, finding a loose one to hide the scarf under.  
I felt a lot more vulnerable without it on.

I completed the task not a moment too soon, as an intimidating guard called me outside to change into a dirty-looking overall similar to what everyone else was wearing.

"Thanks." I said to the blue-haired boy; to which he simply nodded.

"So what's your name?" an energetic, rather cute girl bounced up to me; her apparent cheeriness in a place like this amazed me.

"Lucy."

"Oh, right. It's been a long time since I've had to explain this to someone, but we only really use each other's last names here." She informed me, rubbing the back of her head.

"Why?" I asked. Was it some way for the guards to dehumanise us or something?

"It's complicated." She replied, shrugging.  
With a sigh, a tall, muscular boy on the other side of the cage explained for her.

"First names are for the outside world. Using our last names is just… easier, you know? I don't want my first name to be tainted by this place, if that makes any sense."

I didn't really get it, but I assumed these people had been in here for a long time. Years, even. They would know the effects of this place much better than I would.

"Anyway, I'm Mikazuchi." He continued.  
"Martez." The short girl piped up, pointing to herself.  
"Buchanan." Said the boy with the angular face.  
"Ramos." The boy with the blond hair announced.  
"Fernandes." The blue-haired boy added.  
"And I'm Sankar, or gramps if you prefer. And you?"

I went to answer the old man's question, but paused. There was nothing stopping me using the name Heartfilia now, was there? Then again, did I really want to call myself that?

"No surname?" Ramos asked after my extended silence.  
"That's okay, but for the love of god don't allow Fernandes to name you." Mikazuchi chortled, making everyone smile.

"Yeah, unless you want your name to be Yellow or Blonde." Buchanan said, and I was surprised by the round of laughter the comment earned. Who knew I'd hear laughter in a place like this?

"I get the feeling I'm missing something." I smiled slyly at Fernandes, who was now blushing.  
He muttered a barely coherent "Whatever" before turning away; I got the feeling I'd have fun embarrassing him in the future.

"It's Ashley, by the way." I told them after the snickering had died down.

A loud alarm sound suddenly entered my ears, making me jump and reminding me where I really was. Trapped. Locked up within my worst nightmare with no way out. In a place that made even Erza shudder.  
Funny, how these people managed to make me forget all of that for those brief moments.

"Just follow our lead, don't talk to anyone and don't draw attention to yourself. Don't let the guards see you slacking." Fernandes quickly whispered to me as Martez pulled me outside of the now opened cage.

Our group joined several other groups with people of all ages and sizes; I was sickened to see that there were even worn-out children who couldn't have been over the age of ten. Guards flanked us as we were led towards a large underground tunnel lined with pickaxes and wheelbarrows.

"The alarm signals when the manual labour shifts start." The old man, Sankar quietly informed me as he picked up a heavy axe.

It was a lot to take in, but the urgency in the blue-haired boy's voice made me realise I should heed his warning.  
As heavy as the pickaxe was, I didn't want to know what would happen if I didn't take his advice.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

My breathing was heavy. I was sweating and the underground humidity wasn't helping. Blisters and splinters covered my fingers, and the guards hadn't told us to stop yet.

 _This_ is what I'd have to do every day?  
Not to mention the claustrophobia was starting to overwhelm me.  
Well, at least I was finally working on my cardio, right?

And, between the spine-tingling sounds of the blunt pickaxes hitting solid rock, the muffled conversations I overheard when the guards weren't nearby were surprisingly entertaining.

For example, there was a rather interesting group of four people who were chipping away at the area of rocks next to me. Two of them, I'd gathered, were dating. I mean, if their arguments *cough* flirting *cough* were anything to go by.

In a way, their similarity to Gajeel and Levy was comforting. And I'd take any form of positivity to distract me from the reality of this place.

"You're hitting the rocks wrong." The brunette woman with glasses muttered.  
"I'm hitting them in a manly way." The giant white-haired man replied; his reasoning almost made me laugh out loud, whereas his friends didn't even seem to react to it.  
"Well, she would know everything there is to know about stone. You just need to look into her eyes." A man with a large, dark face tattoo teased, sticking his abnormally long tongue out at the fuming woman.

"Guys, be quiet. And for the record, Strauss, a downward motion would be a lot more effective." The green-haired man chided his group.

I stopped mid-way through raising my axe when I heard that name.

That was Mira and Lisanna's last name.  
That man had the exact same abnormal white hair as them.

 _"You don't think he could be a mage, do you?" Lisanna asked.  
"That's what I was thinking. That __**man**_ _needs to pick up his phone once in a while." Mira said, a small smile playing at her lips when she said the word 'man'.  
"Yeah, it's so __**un-manly**_ _of him to ignore us like that." Lisanna added, making both sisters erupt in laughter._

"Elfman?" I whispered disbelievingly.

When he immediately responded to the name, looking at me with wide eyes and thus confirming my suspicion, I felt my heart break a little.

"I don't know who you are, but don't use his first na-"  
"Mira and Lisanna were trying to get into contact with you." I spoke over the brunette woman as she defended him.

Their brother… they'd be devastated if they knew he was in here…

However, before I could register Elfman's reaction, I felt a tight grip on my arm.

"Gotta love the newbies. Always think they got a right to talk." A snide voice whispered in my ear. I froze. I shouldn't have talked. _I shouldn't have talked. What was I thinking?_

Before I knew it, I was being dragged away from the others. I glanced at their expressions, only to see that they were void of all emotion.  
Which makes sense. This sort of thing must happen a lot to them.

But as my heart pounded and my breathing became shallow for fear of the unknown, I knew I just wasn't able to hide my emotions like they did.

What if I was made to fight a monster as punishment? No, they didn't do that to holder type mages, did they? But then again, they didn't seem to exactly care about our welfare here. Would they just put me in the same room as one and allow it to… kill me?

Before I could even begin to calm myself down, I was brought into a room where chains lined the walls. My first reaction was relief; there were no monsters.  
It was then that I was chained to the wall, and my relief was quickly overtaken by yet more fear as some sort of canon was aimed at me.

It was all happening so fast. Were they really going to shoot me? Already? Just for talking?

The guard just smirked at my frightened expression and flipped the switch on the dangerous-looking weapon.

That was when time slowed down. I closed my eyes and pictured where I'd been yesterday. Drinking at the pub with my friends. Laughing at things that weren't even funny, just for the sake of it, and feeling genuinely content with Natsu's warmth next to me.  
Natsu… I never found him to give him back his scarf, did I?  
He'd better not do something stupid in my absence. They'd better all stay hidden back in Magnolia.

I expected darkness to follow the attack from the canon. What I received, though, was this… draining feeling. Like it was sucking he very life force out of my entire being.  
And it was painful.

I felt screams leave my throat without permission.  
If exhausting my magical power was like running a marathon, then this was like being forced to run it again and again with two broken ankles.

Was this the harvesting of magical power that Erza mentioned?

I don't know how long it went on for.  
All I know is that towards the end, I was convinced they weren't going to stop until all the magic in my body had been taken from me.

* * *

 **A/N: I hope the light-hearted parts made up for… well, that.**

 **I imagine the canon being used on Lucy would be like the one they used on the dragon slayers in Edolas, except it's not restricted to harvesting only dragon-slayer magic.**

 **And as for the list of surnames for the tower of heaven crowd:  
Wally - Buchanan (he already had a surname, this is just a reminder)  
Milliana – Martez  
Sho – Ramos  
Simon – Mikazuchi (thank you compucles and guest for the correction - he has a canon surname)  
Rob – Sankar**

 **Sara lovelymusic: I can only offer my most sincere apologies, and maybe some tissues**

 **Sabrina-Luna-Potter: I can promise you here and now that Lucy doesn't die. I mean, I'm having trouble deciding whether to kill off the people that actually died in the manga/anime.  
Or maybe I'm just saying that so that you'll read until the end, then I'll decide to drop a bombshell on you. Who knows?**

 **Guest: Yes the ships will happen... soon**

 **Thanks to all my reviewers, even the ones who now hate me! I really appreciate your comments**

 **-usnoozulose**


	21. Chapter 21

**NATSU POV**

"Natsu Dragneel."

I didn't even look at Gildarts when he called my name for registration.  
First, he tells us to 'wait' and 'not be so reckless' when we tell him we're going to rescue Lucy from that concentration camp. Then, he has the nerve to make us go to school and sit around doing nothing while literally _anything_ could be happening to her right now.

I clenched my fists, preparing myself to hear her name called out in the register.  
But when Gildarts told us all to go to our next lessons, I realised that he had intentionally missed out both Loke and Lucy's names.

As everyone stood up, chatting animatedly about petty gossip or whatever, I just stared at the two empty desks in front of me where they used to sit.

"Natsu, just go to your next lesson. Lucy wouldn't want you to-"  
"Don't talk about her like she's dead." I interrupted the teacher, glaring at him.

Logically, I knew it wasn't his fault. I knew we couldn't just go barging into the concentration camp as we were. I mean, if we ended up in there with Lucy, she'd get angry at us.  
But was logic really necessary when my best friend was in there?

Funnily enough, the one person I could rely on to answer that question was the one who'd been taken.

"Luce would know what to do." I managed to say as the teacher just stared at me, a steely look in his eyes. And it was true. If she was here, she would be able to find the right words to make me feel okay again.

I just felt so fucking… _lost_ without her here.

Without waiting for an answer, I got up and headed for my next class. Instead of readjusting my scarf like I would usually do when I was walking in the hallways, my hand settled in the pocket where I kept one of Lucy's replicated celestial keys.

Before I knew it, I'd reached my history class.  
"Did you hear that Loke and Lucy are ditching again? It's like they're not even taking their A-Levels seriously!" some girl whispered, earning a round of agreements from her friends.

I sat down heavily at my desk, attempting to tune out the clueless people around me.

"Wait, you haven't heard? Rumour is, the police were going around giving out wanted posters for Lucy. Crazy, huh?"

Ignore them. That's what Luce would tell me to do, right?

"No wonder, she did beat Loke up on the first day. I hope she got arrested, there's no way I'd want to associate with someone like-"

"SHUT UP!" I heard myself shouting, suddenly right in front of the group of people who'd been talking.

They just gawked at me as I stood there, fuming.  
How dare they talk about her like that! They didn't know a thing.

"Hey man, we weren't talking to you. Chill." Some guy scoffed, raising his eyebrows at me.

"You were disrespecting my friend." I retorted.

"Yeah, well, violent people like her don't deserve respect." He sneered.

"Well neither do faces like yours." I growled, raising my fist. I took the time to revel in the satisfaction of seeing him panic, before aiming for his face.  
But something stopped my arm mere centimetres away from its target.

He didn't have to say anything for me to know the human icicle had been the one to stop me.

I could see the rage on his face which most likely mirrored mine. He simply shook his head at me as if to say 'It's not worth it' before letting go of my arm and sitting at his desk.

My thoughts flickered back to the image of him as we were all walking home in the rain, numb from Lucy's disappearance. The downpour was almost torrential, but when it reached within a metre radius of him, it turned into snow.

He wasn't as close to Luce as I was, but her capture still affected him. And if he could deal with it without creating a scene, then there was no way I was going to lose my cool.  
Don't get me wrong, I'm sure we'd find a way to deal with the bastard who spoke badly of Lucy. We just had an unspoken agreement to do it without the staring eyes of our history teacher present.

"Alright kids, save the conflict for our class debates. We're starting a new topic today!" she told us cheerily, setting down her books. "Now, who here has heard from their parents or grandparents about a man named… Zeref?" she addressed the class, adopting a serious expression upon speaking the name.

Despite my interest in history, I felt my mind starting to wander. It was stupid turning up to school today, even if Gildarts threatened me with a real detention if I hadn't. There was no point of me being here; I could be training or planning or-

"-was the first known mage to ever live, and is the reason we know to control the freedom of mages to this day."

The teacher's voice penetrated my internal monologue, and I began listening intently to what she was saying.

"This year will be the 400th anniversary of the discovery of magic. It was a very dark day in history, which is why it is not widely discussed often. Is there anyone in here who knows the details of what occurred?"

I looked around the class and was glad to see that nobody had their hands up. So I wasn't the only person who didn't have a clue; in hindsight I really should have found this out myself. After all, it was the cause of all of… this.

"I'm not surprised. Well then, turn to page 394 in your textbooks. You may start familiarising yourselves with the brief description of events now, and then we'll have a class discussion in 20 minutes." The teacher announced, lazily taking out her phone while the class engrossed themselves in reading.

I noticed that after every line of writing, the same thought repeated in my head; Lucy would be okay right now if it wasn't for this guy… Zeref.

 **LOKE POV**

It was Monday in Earthland time and she hadn't called me out yet for college. I debated whether or not I should just open my own gate to remind her; the last time I did that, I found her in the arms of that numbskull pyromaniac, sleeping in the forest.

Pfft, trust Lucy to go for him rather than me, her knight in shining armour who always let her know that she was a princess.  
But as much as I wanted to kick him off her and whisk her away, with her blushing and shouting at me to put her down, I found myself smiling at the two kids.

I hated to admit it, but he was good for her. And with that thought, I closed my own gate, content with the fact that she was safe.

Now, did I really want to see what had made her forget to call me out today?

With a sigh, I finally decided to open my own gate.

My body reacted instantly as I entered the unfamiliar dimly-lit room; adrenaline entered my veins and I instinctively pressed my back against the wall.

I had opened my gate near where my key was. Lucy wasn't here, which meant that she didn't have her keys.  
 _But she took her keys everywhere with her._

Something was definitely not right. The only reason she wouldn't have her keys with her is...

My eyes widened when my suspicion was confirmed; a guard wearing a familiar uniform passed the room I was in as I hid in the shadows.  
The last time I'd seen that clothing was on the failed rescue mission to the concentration camp…

 _No, it can't be. Not again. Why wasn't I there for her?_

As I tried to control my breathing to make it as quiet as possible, I desperately tried to think of a solution to this. She'd saved my life, given me a home again, and now it was my turn to return the favour.

With my plan and resolve set, I ventured out of the room, using my lion-like instincts to tell me when to hide. Although the underground labyrinth was unfamiliar, I had a vague idea of where to go due to the mapping-out process of the rescue mission all those years ago.

Another thing that botched mission had taught me is that the guards only had power because they had numbers. Get one on their own, and they're harmless.

And where was the best place to get someone on their own?

Needless to say, the guard who was washing his hands, humming an off-beat tune did not see it coming. I found myself smirking despite the situation; there was a reason this method of infiltration was cliché. It was effective and only had repercussions hours later when the victim woke up.

So, dressed in my new guard uniform, I started moving freely through the fire-lit passageways, attempting to look like I knew where I was going. Eventually, after following a group of guards complaining about short lunch breaks, I found the place I was looking for.

This area was even more dimly lit than any place I'd been so far. There were rows of adjoined cages on either side of the long cave, and from first sight you could tell the conditions were dire.

Supressing a shiver of pure disgust for this treatment, I ventured down the cave, looking for a head of blonde hair within the cages.

I began to grow paranoid of the questioning stares I received as I walked along, paying way too much attention to the mages. Wouldn't the other guards think something was up if I kept-

Both my thoughts and body stopped dead in their tracks when I saw them.

 **MIRA POV**

Things around the restaurant were so… difficult without Lucy. And it wasn't just the stress of having to be the lone waitress during the hours she used to work.

All I can say is that it was a good thing I was used to acting somewhat cheery when I was put under a load of emotional stress.

"Mira?"

I looked up from the table I was cleaning and found myself staring at a set of stormy grey eyes. My eyes widened when I registered that they were familiar.

"Laxus?" I asked, smiling genuinely when he smirked and gave me a short nod.  
"It's been ages! How are you?" I couldn't help but gush; after all, I hadn't seen him since he went off to university.

"Yeah, it has. I'm surprised you recognised me so easily."

"Don't worry Laxus, you'll always be the same egotistical kid I met on our first day of Magnolia college." I teased, making him roll his eyes.  
I beamed at the nostalgia; it was true he hadn't made the best first impression. But as the two years went by and the darn teachers kept making us lab partners in chemistry, I came to realise that he wasn't really such a bad guy. I didn't know whether it's because he changed or he always had the capacity to be decent.

Either way, our friendship was a close one.  
So close, that even after years of not seeing him, I could still tell when something was troubling him.

"So what brings you back to Magnolia?" I asked nonchalantly, continuing my cleaning of the table.

"There's something I need to talk to you about." He informed me seriously. When I gave him a look to let him know he could continue, he sighed. "Alone."

Looking around the restaurant to confirm that there wasn't too much business to attend to, I walked towards the supply closet as Laxus followed me.

"So?" I asked nervously, dropping my smile once we were alone. The tone Laxus had used was one I hadn't heard before, and by his expression, I knew that something really bad had happened.

"Do you remember Freed, Evergreen and Bixlow?" He asked.

"Yeah, in the year below us; they were good friends with Elfman. They all ended up going to the same university as you, right?" I recounted. This was back in the years when Laxus' grandfather was the head teacher of Magnolia College; he'd retired after Laxus graduated.

He paused and nodded; I let him take the time to think about what he was going to say next.

"Are you close to your brother?"

I frowned at the question.  
"Of course I am, you know that."

"And you trust him? You unconditionally trust that he's a good person?" he pressed, looking for any sign of hesitance in my answer.

As confusing as these questions were, they were easy enough to answer.  
"I grew up with Elfman. I _know_ he's a good person."

Laxus, apparently satisfied with my answer, simply nodded before continuing.

"He's a mage, Mira."

"I knew it!" I instantly remarked, surprising the blonde man with my lack of shock. So my suspicion was correct; I wasn't the only mage in the family! "Wait… does that mean you're also…?"

"A mage, yeah. It's kind of a relief you're taking this so well." he commented, raising his eyebrows. "I always got the impression you hated us."

I thought back to the times when I expressed my disgust for mages when I was in college with Laxus. I never told him why I hated them so much; all he knew is that I did.  
And it must have killed him to hear me saying those things.

"I'm so sorry-" I stopped my apology when he placed his hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see a small smile on his face, and I knew that I had his forgiveness. "After all, I kind of found out recently that I'm a mage as well." I continued.

So was this all he wanted to tell me? That my brother was a mage? No, I could see there was something else.

"Mira… how would you feel about going on a rescue mission to the concentration camps that hold mages like us?" he asked seriously.

"I'm actually already planning one with a group of kids at Magnolia College. One of my friends was taken…" I paused; it was painful bringing up Lucy. Yet, something else was playing on my mind. "But what does this have to do with Elfman, Freed, Ever and Bix?" I asked.

The instant steeliness I saw in the blonde's grey eyes put a vice on my heart.

"We'll be rescuing them, too. They were taken as well, Mira."

 **LUCY POV**

When I came to, my entire body ached like it had never ached before. Every joint, every muscle, every bone in my body protested at the fact that I was still being held up by uncomfortable chains. How long had I been here? Hours? Overnight?

I bit my lip as I held back the sobs triggered by my memories; I'd never felt fear like that. I was alive, but being reminded so strongly of my own mortality as it was being threatened was terrifying.

And the worst part was that it wasn't over. Even if they let me go back to my cage, they could easily just bring me here again. I was trapped. I was helpless.

However, as I battled with my own terror, I found an unknown strength filling me as my thoughts drifted towards my friends.  
And, naturally, they focused on Natsu.

Natsu would know what to do.

He would've fought the guards off instead of being paralysed with fear. And if that didn't work, he would've spent his remaining energy shouting insults at them, laughing in the face of danger and simply taking it on as another new challenge.  
Because he was strong and just genuinely optimistic like that.

And I couldn't be pessimistic when I had a friend like him, right?

Just when I had that thought, I heard footsteps outside. Was someone finally coming to take me back to the cage?  
I made a brief glance at them as they passed the barred window on the door, and I felt my mouth fall open. Was that…

It was the exact same ginger hair as him. The same glasses. But it couldn't be…  
Then again, it could. They had my keys because I'd been careless enough to be caught with them.

Loke was here. He'd summoned himself. And knowing his past, he was bound to do something stupid…

"Lo-" I tried to call out, only succeeding in giving myself a coughing fit. My throat felt like I'd swallowed sandpaper; it must've been from all the screaming I did.

I needed to find him and make sure he didn't get into trouble. I had to.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

If I'd felt drained before, this was exhaustion on a whole new level.

They eventually took me out of that room, and I attempted to make a mental note of the route we took. I was then thrown into the vacated cage and told I had 5 minutes to eat and drink before I was sent to work. Apparently, the shift had already started.  
The first thing I did was get Natsu's scarf from behind the jagged rocks. I sort of just sat there, holding it, before wrapping it around my waist underneath my clothing.

I don't even know why I did that; I knew it just made it more likely that it would get confiscated.

But before I could undo my actions, I'd already been called outside to work.  
And after hours of getting my magic drained out of me, it was becoming very difficult.

Not to mention I flinched every time the guards barked out orders.  
Earlier, Sankar had tried to speak to me as we worked, but whatever he wanted to say was drowned out by a guard yelling at us to stop talking. I couldn't stop myself from shaking, and I was glad when the old man turned away to save the conversation for later.

He probably wanted to ask if I was okay, and honestly I was touched that he decided to share his empathy with me. When I saw the same feelings in everyone else's eyes, I gave them a small smile to let them know that I appreciated it.  
I decided that it was a good thing to remain optimistic in a place like his, no matter how difficult it would be.

And I had to be optimistic that I would find Loke, wherever he was.  
Which is why I was looking for any possible opportunity to sneak away unnoticed. My plan consisted of going back in the direction of the room I'd seen him from, which would be my starting point in my search.  
Fool-proof, right?

Okay, yeah, it was stupid. But so was jumping through the window of a moving train, and that had proven to be the smartest thing I'd ever done.

I just needed to bide my time…

"Security breach! All available guards are to search the area for an escapee in a guard uniform!" an eerie voice echoed through the cave, turning everyone's heads towards the same direction.

 _Perfect._

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Okay, so don't ask me how I managed to get away un-noticed. Maybe I was noticed, but wasn't registered because I wasn't wearing a guard uniform?  
Perhaps it had something to do with my mother's nickname for me, 'lucky Lucy'?

Who knows? All I knew is that while I'd gotten farther than I expected to, I was now hopelessly lost in the underground maze that led to the magic harvesting room.

And I was _scared._  
But I was also determined to find the celestial spirit.  
So, taking Natsu's scarf from my waist and wrapping it around my neck for a boost of confidence, I carried on searching.

That was, until I heard the long overdue sound of footsteps approaching.  
Without a second thought, I quickly opened the door of the room next to me and bolted inside, closing it softly.  
Pressing my back against the door as my heart hammered in my chest, I prayed for the guards to just walk past.

I also took this opportunity to glance around the room for another possible place I could hide, only to find that I was in a huge cave; easily bigger than any I'd seen in this place.  
And along the sides were giant cages.

Cages with large figures in them. Large figures of different colours, each with a set of glowing, reptilian eyes.  
Eyes that were fixed onto me.

Oh my god… _oh my god, they were-_

"Natsu?" a deep, rumbling voice came from the cage nearest to me; from the dim lighting I could see red scales and spikes decorating the creature's body. The reptilian eyes were fixed on the scarf around my neck that I was gripping onto like a lifeline.

 _And… and he said that name… did this mean…?_

"Since when were you blonde?" the rumbling sound echoed around the cave, tickling me with the vibrations.

There was no doubt in my mind now. There was no way this wasn't Natsu's dad.

* * *

 **A/N: Did Loke complete his mission? Did he manage to escape? Will the rescuers ever get off their asses and actually start rescuing? Did anyone spot the Harry Potter reference? So many questions!**

 **I feel like this update took extra long because I usually update twice a week. My excuse is that I've been stressing over my own A-Level results and I'm glad to say that I got into my first choice university!  
I started writing this story when I was 17 and still doing my exams, and now I'm 18 and officially a university student. Adulthood is mind-blowing.**

 **Also, I'm going on holiday again. For two weeks. No computer. Yeah. I'll get right back to writing when I return, though. I made this chapter longer to make up for the absence; it was originally going to end at Mira's POV**

 **Compucles: I edited the last chapter, thanks for your correction and long review!**

 **Silverskye wings: thank you! And I hope this chapter answered your question. Basically, they were confiscated and kept away from her.**

 **And a final general thank you for all the other reviews as well, I know I repeat this a lot but I really do appreciate it.**

 **-usnoozulose**


	22. Chapter 22

_"Natsu?" a deep, rumbling voice came from the cage nearest to me; from the dim lighting I could see red scales and spikes decorating the creature's body. The reptilian eyes were fixed on the scarf around my neck that I was gripping onto like a lifeline._

 _And… and he said that name… did this mean…?_

 _"Since when were you blonde?" the rumbling sound echoed around the cave, tickling me with the vibrations._

 _There was no doubt in my mind now. There was no way this wasn't Natsu's dad._

As I struggled to speak, I registered that the footsteps outside the room were getting further and further away; I wasn't going to get caught anytime soon.

"I-… I'm-" I stuttered quietly, my sight darting to count all the pairs of eyes staring at me; there were 5 of them.

"Speak up dear, these cages cancel out our magic as well as our enhanced senses." A charismatic voice spoke up, no quieter than the one I heard before but seemingly more high pitched; more feminine.

A slight grin played on my lips when I realised how silly I was being. I mean, Natsu's dad was here. Natsu loved his dad, and that was good enough for me. Why was I letting myself be intimidated by the difference in species or the fact that they could eat me in one bite?  
Cool it, Lucy. If these dragons were carnivorous then Natsu, Wendy and Gajeel would have been eaten years ago.

I cleared my throat, walking forwards out of the shadows so that I could talk to them. But before I could speak, Igneel's voice filled the cave again.

"You're not Natsu, are you?" he asked; I could make out his dragon features forming into a confused frown.

"That's a good thing though, isn't it? He's not locked up here." I responded, smiling up at him as I reached the bars of his cage.  
He simply eyed me with surprised curiosity as he lowered his large head to my height, the heat of his breath momentarily bringing me back to the burnt patch of the clearing where I first stargazed with Natsu.

"You have his scarf." The red dragon observed.  
I nodded slowly. I didn't want to explain how I'd failed to give it back to him. It was Natsu's only connection to Igneel and I wasn't feeling up to telling the intimidating dragon I'd taken it away from him.

"Who are you? What is your relationship with my son?" He urged.  
"My name is Lucy. Natsu… He's my best friend. He's safe, in case you were wondering."

It was fascinating watching emotions drift through the reptilian face in front of me. I'd always had trouble imagining a dragon bringing up something as delicate as a human child, but now that I was face to face with what I once thought was a mythical creature, I could finally picture it.

When I looked into Igneel's slit irises, I saw the immense relief of a father learning that his child was okay. This sight created images in my head of a small Natsu hugging the dragon's snout, and then curling up under the old softie's wing as he slept.  
Whatever residual fear I had flew out the window.

Igneel continued staring at me in silence, so I decided to catch him up on what he'd missed with his son.

"He grew up in a care home after you disappeared. I only really met him a few months ago when he pulled me through the window of a moving train. Long story short, he prevented me getting caught as a mage back then." I chuckled at the memory whilst igneel's expression told me to continue.

"He ended up convincing me to go to Magnolia College, and we eventually found out about each other's magic after he saved my life. It's really amazing, by the way. His dragon slaying magic." I gushed, not missing the proud look on the dragon's face.

I was about to tell him about our trip to get Wendy when I stopped to look at the other dragons who were all listening intently to my ramblings.

"Hey! Why'd you stop?" the rumbling voice whined behind me, prompting me to shush him.  
 _I just shushed a huge-ass dragon,_ I thought to myself giddily.

"Natsu had a sort-of little sister in the care home, and she was a dragon slayer as well." I said, still eyeing the other dragons for a reaction.  
And I immediately got one as the female dragon who'd spoken before perked up. She didn't say anything, but I could see the hope in her kind eyes.

"Wendy's doing fine. Grandine, right?" I asked, approaching her cage. She nodded slowly, overcome with the same relief I'd seen on igneel's face. "Her magic is outstanding too. She saved two of our friend's lives when they were gravely injured."

I beamed at the fact that I had the opportunity to update these parents on their children's well beings. It was a definite highlight of getting sent to this concentration camp.

"There's another dragon slayer I know – Gajeel." I mentioned, turning to the other dragons.

"So what's his nickname for you, huh? It's gotta be a rodent of some sort, I bet." An armoured dragon chuckled deeply, showing me his shiny pointed teeth.  
Yep, that was Gajeel's dad alright. Just as rude.

"Are you saying I'm a rodent?" I challenged him, marching up to his cage.  
"No, I'm asking if my brat thinks you're a rodent, rodent." He retorted, grinning.  
"Bunnies aren't rodents."  
"Bunny girl, huh?"  
"Oh god, not you too…" I moaned, facepalming as the iron dragon's deep laughter caused vibrations to fill the cave.

"Does Natsu call you that too?" Igneel asked.  
"Thankfully no, he calls me Luce. Weirdo when he's trying to annoy me." I smiled to myself.

"Lucy?" one of the dragons I hadn't talked to yet addressed me, gaining my attention. "You don't happen to know two boys the same age as Wendy by the names of Ryos and Sting, do you?"

I approached the cages of two dragons; one a startling white colour whilst the other was black and seemed to be surrounded by more shadows than usual.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know them. I would say I'll look out for them but hopefully they haven't ended up in this place." I confessed, not missing the disappointment written in their expressions.

"How did you all end up in here anyway?" I asked, addressing all the dragons present.

"They tracked us using their technology. Those humans had it all planned out – they ambushed us all at the same time so that we couldn't roar for help from each other. It was all we could do to hide our children as we were captured." Grandine informed me sadly.

I was hit with the unfairness of it all. These dragons had taken in orphaned children, became parents and were then ripped away from their families without any chance of communication. Meanwhile, the children, having being orphaned again, were left with abandonment issues.

"They miss you guys so much, you know." I said.  
I watched all the dragons bow their heads in acknowledgement.

"But at the same time, the three I know are surrounded by their friends. We're sort of like a family in a way. I mean, even Gajeel has a soft spot for a bookworm he calls Shrimp." I winked at Metallicana and saw his eyes widen slightly.

"Thank you." Grandine called from behind me, and I turned around. Her smile was warm and maternal despite the array of sharp teeth she was showing me. "Thank you for being their friends and informing us of their wellbeing."

I put up my hand and was about to stop her needless gratitude when she interrupted me.

"It means so much to us. We've been locked in here for years without knowing and we could only hope they were alright. Thank you." She repeated, earning murmurs of agreement from the other dragons, even the ones I hadn't been able to help.

I really couldn't take the tragedy anymore. I couldn't imagine being locked in here for years without my magic. It was horrible and abusive and claustrophobic and… I had to get them out. I would free them. I had to.

Setting my resolve, I walked over to the nearest cage where Igneel was and began studying the bars for any sort of door. Finding no such opening, I stepped back to study the thick metal, trying to find a weak spot.

"Now I know why my boy calls you weirdo." The red dragon mused. I realised that all the dragons were watching we with perplexed expressions and rolled my eyes.  
"I'm not a weirdo. I'm looking for a way to break you guys out. Are there, like, keys or something?" I asked, peering around the corners of the dimly lit cave.

"We're sealed in, bunny girl. Unless you're hiding superhuman strength inside those tiny noodle arms, we ain't going anywhere" Metallicana gruffed.

"I'm not just going to leave you here. There has to be a way." I reasoned, holding onto my 'noodle' arms and scowling at the metallic dragon.

I went back to tapping on the bars, failing to find even one dent in the cage material. That was, until I looked up and nearly jumped when I saw Igneel's large eye only a few centimetres from my face.

"Natsu wouldn't lend his scarf to just anyone, you know." He informed me.  
I gulped at his sudden cryptic behaviour.  
"W-well, yeah. I'm his friend and I was cold." _He refused to take it back when I told him I wasn't cold anymore, though._

"And he still let you get caught and sent here?" he asked quizzically.

I blinked my eyes in disbelief at the accusation.  
"Of course not! None of this is his fault. Why would you-"

"I thought I taught my son to protect those dear to him." He interrupted me provokingly.  
"He did! He said he would protect me and he saved my life, as well as others. He freaked out when I put myself in danger and made me laugh when I needed to and managed to make me less scared when we were faced with danger and he's probably worried sick and about to do something stupid and- … why are you smiling like that?" I paused mid-rant when a scheming grin overtook the dragon's face.

Wait… was he just doing this to rile me up?

"He's special to you, isn't he?" Igneel asked.  
"Yes." I replied without hesitation before blushing at how obvious I was being.  
Damn it. This dragon managed to have some wisdom on top of the childishness he'd no doubt passed onto Natsu.

Attempting to distract myself, I looked back at the cage and thought of a way I could somehow break it, since it didn't seem to have any openings.

"Would Taurus be able to break it? No, maybe Virgo could dig underneath? But I don't have my keys…" I muttered to myself before realising something important I'd forgotten.  
My eyes widened.

"Loke… oh god, I got distracted…" I voiced aloud.

"You're even more of a weirdo than I thought…" Igneel commented, puzzled by my sudden change in demeanour.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I was looking for a friend of mine – one of my celestial spirits – I saw him wandering around and I need to find him." I panicked. What if he'd already been caught?

I stood there, torn between staying and trying to help the dragons or bolting out of the door to find Loke.

However, when the door opened suddenly, allowing several guards to flood in and spot me instantly, both choices vanished instantly before my eyes.

Fear clouded my thoughts as I realised that I was trapped, and probably due for a worse punishment than I'd faced before. If I was drained of my magic power just for talking, then I didn't want to think of what was about to happen.

In my head, I tried to scold myself for running off and getting into this situation.  
But that was the thing.  
I didn't regret trying to find my friend, even though it proved to be futile. I didn't regret meeting the dragons. I couldn't find it in me to regret my actions at all.

So, as the sneering guards approached me like a pack of wild animals, I found myself holding my head high. Remembering the scarf around my neck, I quickly took it off and slipped it into Igneel's cage before rough hands snatching at my arms prevented me from further movement.

"HEY! GET YOUR SLIMY HANDS OFF HER, SHE DID NOTHING WRONG!" Igneel's anger was almost tangible throughout the cave as I was dragged away.

"And what are you going to do about it, lizard?" a guard taunted, standing outside of the fiery-eyed dragon's cage. Low growls echoed against every wall as all five dragons rose to their feet.

Igneel suddenly raised his claw against the metal bars, the sharp spikes protruding from each claw poking through the spaces of the cage, coming within a few centimetres of the guard. He took a step back, however despite the intimidation, he still chuckled cruelly.

"Nothing, that's what." he jeered at the dragon as I was dragged, struggling and cursing, out of the door.

* * *

 **A/N: I finally updated! I'm not sure why, but I'm just not really happy with this chapter; it's difficult getting back into the swing of things after being away for a long time.**

 **As always, thank you guys so much for reviewing, you have no idea how long I've wanted to write a scene between Lucy and Igneel!**

 **Also, just as a totally unrelated sidenote (spoilers for non-manga readers) has anyone ever seen fanart or fanfiction describing Nalu children? Because they all have either pink or blonde hair, and I was thinking it would be more interesting if the Nalu child had black hair. Like his/her uncle Zeref. Effectively confusing the hell out of Natsu and Lucy, assuming they don't know.**

 **Once I finish this fanfic, I have a next-gen story idea which I don't think has been done before, and I might start writing it.**

 **Anyway, sorry for the short chapter, but my updates will start to be more often now!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	23. Chapter 23

**NATSU POV**

I was restless, exhausted, angry, and a load of other describing words that Lucy would probably know.  
Oh, and I'd somehow ended up in her empty dorm room at some point during the night. I climbed up here in an almost trance-like state, leaving Wendy and the two exceeds alone in my room.

It's almost like I climbed several storeys in the hope of hearing Luce scolding me in the distance for my reckless behaviour.

So here I was, lying in her bed surrounded by her fading, yet still comforting scent. I wonder if she'd be annoyed to see her duvet all messed up when she came back…

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"Jheez, I knew I'd find you in here."  
The irritating voice woke my tired ass up from the first real sleep I'd had in ages. Maybe if I went back to sleep, he'd piss off?

"Oi. Flamebrain. School."  
I felt something hard kick my leg and instantly retaliated by kicking back. When I heard a crash and muffled cursing, a smirk stretched across my face.

"I'm sleeping, ice princess. So unless you want me to kick your frozen ass-"  
"ICE-MAKE: HAMMER!" the snow fairy yelled, and I instinctively darted out of bed to the other side of the room, coating my arms in flames.

He'd formed this massive hammer and was swinging it towards me with a shit-eating grin on his face, and all I could do was attempt to block it. It hit me with enough force to send me a few steps back, but I dug my heels into the floor to prevent it from knocking me over. No way would I allow that snowflake to overpower me.

"Oh look, you're out of bed and I'm kicking _your_ ass. Funny how that worked out." He taunted, only to be met with my grin.  
"Your ice ain't nothing against my fire, asshole." I growled as water from the melted ice began dripping at my feet.

"Whatever." He drawled nonchalantly, making his ice disappear and subsequently making me fall flat on my face.  
"Why you little piece of-"  
"Hey, you're just lucky I found you first. Erza's also searching for you, Gildarts' orders."

"I don't care." I replied simply.  
Usually, the thought of Erza's rage directed at me for missing school would've had me bolting out the window, but I just didn't have the motivation. All I wanted to do was make sure Lucy was okay so that I could get all these damn worst case scenarios out of my head.

"I won't care until we start the rescue mission." I continued.  
Freeze brain just eyed me with a straight face before running his hands through his hair, sighing.

"Look, I know it's difficult, but-"  
"Difficult isn't even the word for it. Lucy's _gone_. I have no idea where she is even though I promised to protect her, and you guys are all expecting me to just forget about her-"

"Oi, we don't expect that at all, numbskull!"  
"Well good, because my head's not even _functioning_ correctly when she's in there. So save your breath and _fuck off_ , ice princess." I spat, sitting back down on Lucy's bed.

I glared at the black-haired boy, challenging him to argue with me. As much as I wanted to restrain myself from destroying Lucy's room, I wouldn't hesitate to throw fire balls at him 'till he left. It was safe enough anyway, seeing how everyone living in the dorms was currently in school.

To my surprise, however, Gray simply shook his head in exasperation.  
"God, you've fallen so hard for her, it's pathetic." He commented in an almost teasing way.  
"What's that supposed to mean? I haven't fallen anywhere!"

As I sat there, confused as to what he was going on about, he facepalmed so hard it almost looked like he slapped his own face.

"Look fire pansy, I'm gonna give you some advice. Not to help you or anything, just because I feel sorry for you. And if you tell anyone, I'll deny it." He rushed the last part, avoiding eye contact with me.  
"And what makes you think I need your dumb advice-"

"Do yourself a favour and figure out your feelings for Lucy. Think about the future so that when we rescue her, you'll have your head on straight."

I stared at him for what seemed like minutes, steam flying out of my ears as I thought about what he said. My feelings for Lucy? She's my friend so they're good feelings, right? I also feel like saving her… does he mean the future after the rescue mission?

We'll probably finish our A-Levels, then go to university, then… after that, I had no clue. She'd probably become a writer and I'll end up doing something else.  
And I was surprised to realise that the idea of that _scared_ me. Because there would be no guarantee we'd stick together.

I mean, I know people go in different directions, but I found myself wanting to go in whatever direction Lucy was going in. Then I'd never have to be as lost as I am now.  
I concluded that whatever this was, it had something to do with my feelings for Lucy. She's the one I wanted in my future, so I'd have to do something to make her stay.

Simple, really.

"Man, Lucy has horrendous taste if I'm right about this." Gray muttered, rolling his eyes. "Good luck dealing with Erza when she finds you, burnout."  
And with that, he left.

Suddenly, sitting here waiting for the monster with red hair to maim me didn't seem like such a good idea.

"Hey! I wasn't done fighting you, you pretentious icicle!" I yelled, running along the trail of discarded clothes from that stupid stripper.  
"I'm surprised you managed to fit that big word in your tiny brain, Neanderthal!" he shouted back as we headbutted.

"ARE YOU BOYS FIGHTING?" Her voice sent shivers down my spine as my life flashed before my eyes.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

 **LEVY POV**

I was glad when Mira contacted the group after school to arrange a meeting. I didn't wear my emotions on my sleeve like Natsu does so it wasn't nearly as obvious, but I was distraught at Lucy's capture. Accepting that nothing would ever be the same again was daunting; after all, it's not like we could just keep living like normal after carrying out this rescue mission, even if it was successful.

Nevertheless, I would get back my friend at all costs. And after hours of staying awake, trying to think of some sort of strategy, I came up with a hypothesis which could be the key to a successful liberation of the concentration camp.

Just a hypothesis, but it would have to do for now.

"You doing all right, shrimp?" Gajeel asked me subtly as we waited in the detention room for everyone to gather.  
I smiled slightly to myself. I had to give it to him; he may insult me to the point of insanity, but the seemingly intimidating boy knew when to be serious.

"Not really. You?" I whispered back.  
"We're working on the mission and I'll finally get to kick some ass, so I'm all set." He grinned, his eyes gleaming.

"Well while you're out there rampaging erratically, I'm going to actually contribute properly with a plan." I boasted. I'd come to learn that nothing annoyed him more than insulting his usefulness in a fight. And I found him… endearing when he was all riled up.  
Not like I'd ever admit that to anyone.

"Oi! Fighting includes strategy too, nerd." He hissed, glaring down at me.  
"I don't know, flailing your metal limbs about doesn't seem to require too much thought." I retorted.

"Should I remind you that you're the one who admitted that I was smart?" He smirked, bending down so that he was eye level with me, his red eyes inches away from mine. His aim was most likely to intimidate me, and he probably thought he achieved that by the way my heart rate increased.

I'm not thick. I knew exactly why I was reacting like this. I was just having trouble accepting that I was… _attracted_ to this oaf. I mean, it's not that I didn't want to be with him. It's just that out of all the books I'd read, not one of the love interests was anything like him.

In romantic novels, the man tended to be kind and considerate and they would sweep the woman off her feet and proclaim his love for her.  
Funny. Ever since I met Gajeel, those male protagonists, all of whom once warmed my heart, now seemed so one-dimensional and entirely dull. So… _cliché._

Trust me to go way outside of the box, right?

"You done staring at me like I have an infected piercing, shrimp?" the iron dragon slayer mocked, chuckling his distinctive laugh when my eyes narrowed in irritation.  
"So what's your plan anyway?" he asked, returning to his original height.

"It has to do with dealing with the monsters. The ravens, phoenixes, all of the ones they're storing at the concentration camp." I informed him. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him raise a pierced eyebrow.  
"And how're you gonna-"

"Thank you, everyone for showing up!" Mira's voice interrupted the conversations going on in the room; everyone had arrived by now, and they were listening intently.  
My eyes drifted to two new people following behind her. One of them was blonde and unmistakably tall - probably as tall as Gildarts. The other was, to my surprise, rather old and even shorter than me.

The blonde one emitted an air of intimidation which contrasted with the paternal aura I got from his smiling companion.

"This is Laxus and Makarov, who used to be the headmaster here. They're joining us for the rescue mission." Mira continued.  
"You… you were a mage this whole time, old man? Get outta here…" Gildarts interjected, pointing accusingly at Makarov, whose smile only increased in width.

"It's good to see you again, Gildarts. I see you've had your hands full with quite a few brats this year." He gestured towards the present college students.  
Gildarts' face broke out in a grin as he rubbed the back of his head.  
"Yeah, never before have I respected your ability to clean up other people's mess-"

"Can we get to the point already?" Natsu thankfully interrupted the small talk between the two older men.  
"My thoughts exactly." The blonde mage – Laxus mumbled.

Makarov turned to Natsu and I held my breath, waiting for the scolding that was sure to follow.

"I heard that someone special to you all was taken." The old man's voice was kind; understanding. I exhaled.  
Natsu nodded briefly.

The old man eyed all the people in the room, addressing everyone. "People have been taken from my grandson and I too. We have similar goals, and as fellow mages in this crisis we now have an unspoken bond to put everything into helping each other. Our resolve all mirrors each other's. Don't go forgetting that."

"Now." He continued, seemingly satisfied by the looks of agreement and determination on our faces. "What have you brats come up with so far regarding this mission?"

As I expected, Erza was the one to step forward.  
"I have mapped out what I know of the inside of the camp, where the mages are kept." She paused, a reserved look sweeping over her face before continuing. "I also know the general area in which the camp is located. Additionally, we have some intelligence on the monsters they are sending out after everyone, including their weakness."

"If you're talking about the eye weakness, they've gotten rid of that bug." Laxus commented, outwardly disinterested.  
"What do you mean?" Erza asked, her eyes wide.

"I fought one a few days ago and had to electrify the crap out of the machinery before the damn thing stopped. Nearly took me down with it."

I could hear Gajeel's teeth grinding beside me as fear struck everyone. If one of us were to unexpectedly face a monster again, we'd have no clue how to deal with it.  
But with my plan, it wouldn't be much of an issue.

"I-"

"Wait, how many of them have found you?" Gray interrupted my timid utterance.  
"They didn't find me, I found them and dealt with them. But the more weaknesses you uncover, the more advanced they evolve, so I can't do that anymore." Laxus explained shortly.

"Well-"

"Hey Laxus, fight me!" Natsu yelled, interrupting me yet again. I sighed. Of course he'd want to fight the guy who actually went looking for the monsters.  
Luckily, Gildarts grabbed the back of Natsu's collar before he could pounce on the perplexed-looking blonde mage.

"Wait, so, let's get this straight. Even overpowered electric dude here is unable to deal with those monsters. How're we gonna infiltrate a place practically swarming with them, as well as all the guards they have there?" Cana asked. I was surprised she was able to sound rational when she was nearly off her head with alcohol.

"It's-"

"It sounds impossible." Lisanna whimpered over the sound of my voice, looking around worriedly.  
"Juvia does not like the sound of this." The blue-haired girl panicked.

Suddenly, the room was full of comments about how difficult this was going to be, as well as people *cough* Natsu *cough* shouting down all the others saying they couldn't do it. As much as I tried to gain everyone's attention, I was frustrated to find that I was simply background noise to everyone's anxiety.

Maybe I should give up. I mean, there's no use getting everyone's hopes up with a plan that may not actually work…

"OI! SHUT THE FUCK UP, LEVY'S GOT A PLAN!" I resisted the urge to cover my ears as the iron dragon slayer roared over every voice in the room, instantly reducing them all to a stunned silence.

As everyone's heads turned to me, I found myself staring at Gajeel. _Did… did he just say my name?_

"What're you waiting for, shrimp? Spit it out already." He smirked at me.  
Ah, I guess permanent use of my real name was something I had yet to achieve.

"It's more of an idea than a plan, but it would save a lot of fighting if it worked." I started, relieved that nobody interrupted me this time. "Basically, the other day I started wondering why only one monster shows up at a time. Wouldn't it be more effective to send out a few of them together?

"There would only be two reasons for this. Number one being too much destruction of public property, in which case my idea is useless. Number two is that they are sent out one at a time to prevent them from attacking each other."

"Why would they attack each other?" Juvia was the one to voice the question on everyone's mind.

"According to Erza, the magic used to power the monsters is harvested from mages, right? And the monsters are programmed to attack people who use that magic. Therefore, if two of them were to come into a close proximity, they would simply attack each other."

I felt myself blushing as everyone continued to stare at me.  
"I- I mean we'd still have to lure them towards each other, that is if it actually works-" I stuttered, looking at the ground.

"That's brilliant! They can just off each other while we kick all the easy human asses!" Gray cheered.  
"Good thinking, Levs! And trust you to take the easy route, ice princess!" Natsu's initial anger was replaced by confidence as he pointed his finger menacingly at the ice mage.

The room was once again filled with noise; however this time it was wholly more positive. I was glad. I even grinned at Gajeel as a way of saying thanks, whereas he decided to ruin it by messing up my hair yet again with his annoyingly rough hand.  
Stupid Gajeel.

"Quiet down brats, there are still things to discuss! Levy's ingenious idea may well open a path for us, but we have yet to plan how we will deal with the other hurdles in our way." Makarov announced as the racket died down.

"Why can't we just improvise? I'm all fired up to go now!" Natsu whined, prompting the older members of the group to roll their eyes.

"We still don't know where the guards and monsters are stationed. We may know where the mages are, but we don't have any form of mapping of the entire concentration camp, not to mention an escape route. We have no idea of numbers, or how strong the foot soldiers are. We need intelligence. Information. _Experience_." Makarov's reasoning put yet another downer on the entire group. The amount of time we'd need to plan something like that…

"I believe I can help with that."

A shocked silence took over as the majority of the people in the room recognised the voice.

"L-Loke? I thought I smelt… thought my senses were playing tricks… you're alone…" Natsu spoke in incomplete sentences, trailing off as he stared at the celestial spirit as if he was a guardian angel.

"After all, this is not the first rescue attempt I've been a part of." Loke's voice sounded both brittle and strong at the same time as he entered the room.  
"I guess I have some explaining to do."

* * *

 **A/N: so, the planning has officially started! I don't really have much to say about this chapter other than how I find it so much easier to write in Lucy/Levy's POV because I don't have to limit my vocabulary.**

 **Yuyui Hime – Thank you so much for the multiple feedbacks, they made my day! Yeah, in hindsight I feel like this would've been better in third person perspective because I'm capable of writing like that, but I just feel a lot more comfortable writing in first person. I'm glad you like it regardless!**

 **And a huge thank you to all my other reviewers as well, as always!**

 **{Spoilers} I received mixed opinions on the Nalu child hair colour (keep in mind that this debate has nothing to do with this fanfic) but consider this: Nalu child that not only has Zeref's hair, but is also almost identical to him. It's not impossible; I would know because I'm nearly an exact replica of my auntie when she was younger.  
What if that's how Natsu discovers he's related to Zeref?**

 **-usnoozulose**


	24. Chapter 24

**LOKE POV**

 _Dressed in my new guard uniform, I started moving freely through the fire-lit passageways, attempting to look like I knew where I was going. Eventually, after following a group of guards complaining about short lunch breaks, I found the place I was looking for._

 _This area was even more dimly lit than any place I'd been so far. There were rows of adjoined cages on either side of the long cave, and from first sight you could tell the conditions were dire._

 _Supressing a shiver of pure disgust for this treatment, I ventured down the cave, looking for a head of blonde hair within the cages._

 _I began to grow paranoid of the questioning stares I received as I walked along, paying way too much attention to the mages. Wouldn't the other guards think something was up if I kept-_

 _Both my thoughts and body stopped dead in their tracks when I saw them._

 _I needed to talk to him. Not just because of the situation, but because… well… I missed my old master._

 _"_ _Let me into that cage." I barked at the guard standing outside it, walking confidently towards her.  
"What are your orders? I haven't been informed of anything regarding these prisoners." She inquired professionally, raising an eyebrow._

 _Damn it… I was blowing my cover… think, Loke, why could a guard go into a cage?  
"Contraband search?" I internally cursed myself; I hadn't meant it to come out as a question._

 _I bit the inside of my cheeks, waiting for her to challenge me. However, her eyes only widened._

 _"_ _You mean one hasn't been done already? A new prisoner was thrown in there yesterday… go right in." she handed me the keys._

 _Luck. Pure, coincidental luck. I loved that word._

 _"_ _I'll be able to handle this myself. We all know how short the breaks are here, so go get yourself a coffee, beautiful." I winked at her, smirking at her slight blush._

 _"_ _T-thank you." She stuttered, before attempting to compose herself and walking away._

 _I looked into the cage before opening it. Rob was there, right at the back; He hadn't noticed me and he was talking animatedly to several young adults who were all listening intently. Probably re-telling one of the stories from his past.  
I smiled to myself. He was always the best storyteller._

 _The clinking sound of metal against metal alerted them of my presence as my trembling hands put the key into the door. They silenced, looking down obediently._

 _It felt like it'd been minutes in the time it took me to open the cage and walk directly up to Rob. I looked around; no guards could see us clearly from here since I'd sent the female guard away. After all these years… I'd finally found him._

 _"_ _Rob." I whispered, my chest feeling constricted, letting a single tear escape my eye._

 _The old man looked up; his face was more sunken than I remembered it. But as signs of recognition overtook his features, I noticed that he still harboured that friendly glint in his eye he'd always had._

 _We were both equally lost for words.  
He stood up slowly, never taking his shocked eyes off my face._

 _"_ _What's going on here?" a girl asked sceptically, looking between the two of us._

 _Rob didn't answer her. Instead, he uttered a few words almost hesitantly.  
"Loke, my old friend… Is it really you?"_

 _I nodded, a smile beginning to play on my lips. His hand started moving towards my shoulder, but then changed course as it swiped at my head._

 _"_ _Hey! What was that for, old man?" I complained, remembering to keep my voice quiet.  
Jheez, after all these years, I didn't get so much as a pat on the back?_

 _"_ _What are you doing here? How did you even get here? Don't tell me you're here for a rescue mission alone because-"_

 _"_ _It'll fail, I know. I learned that the hard way a few years ago." I interrupted him._

 _He looked like he was going to keep scolding me, but stopped when he saw my expression which no doubt reflected the pain inflicted by the both of us by this place. Instead, I saw a kind smile take over his features._

 _"_ _Regardless, I am glad to see you doing well. I was worried…" he said, his hand resting on my shoulder.  
"Likewise, Rob. Should've known even a place like this wouldn't get you down, though." I complimented him.  
It almost felt like old times, us talking like friends again. I could almost hear the pub music in the background as I remembered how we used to drink ourselves silly in a different place every night, travelling and seeing the world. _

_"_ _You must have found another celestial mage, yes?"_

 _His question brought me back into reality. I had a plan to carry out, and as much as I wanted to spend time catching up with him, there was a time limit._

 _"_ _That's why I'm here – she was caught and I need to find her. Have you guys seen a blonde girl with brown eyes? Her name's Lucy Ashley and-"_

 _I drew to a stop when I noticed gasps coming from not only Rob, but all the other people in the cage. Well, there was a definite sign that they knew of her…  
But their expressions were far from positive. Worry gripped at me._

 _"_ _She was in here earlier. But she was caught talking and…" one of the boys spoke, drifting off as he failed to complete his sentence._

 _"_ _And?" I prompted._

"AND?" Natsu yelled, interrupting my story. Despite how I knew he would take his anger out on the messenger, he had a right to know what was happening to her.

"They told me she was sent to get her magic drained." I mumbled, clenching my fists.

"But… but that's gotta be painful, right?" Natsu asked accusingly. "And you just left her there? You didn't do anything to help her?"

"Natsu, stop it!" Lisanna shouted, trying to diffuse the tension.

"BUT THEY'RE HURTING HER AND LOKE DOESN'T GIVE A DAMN!" the pink-haired maniac started flying towards me, fists enflamed. Thankfully, though, Erza tackled him mid-air. She then proceeded to drag him out of the room in order to let him cool off.

A few seconds of silence trickled by before I cleared my throat and started talking again.  
"Lucy saved my life and I intend to put everything into this rescue mission." I defended myself. Natsu's accusations struck a nerve, even though I knew I'd done the right thing in leaving her there for now. Realistically, I couldn't have done anything alone.

"We know. Don't listen to flame brain, he's… a bit emotional at the moment." Gray commented.  
"Everyone is glad to see that Loke is okay and able to help us." Juvia added.

With their reassurance, I took a deep breath before continuing my report of what happened at the concentration camp. I told them about how I'd informed Rob of the upcoming rescue mission which, knowing these kids, I had no doubt was being planned.  
He'd been rather unsure and pessimistic, but promised me he'd tell Lucy about it nonetheless. Then, at least, she'd have hope. That was all I could provide for her at the moment.

I was aware that my luck was running out at that point, and I had to leave the concentration camp. So, with a final goodbye, I turned away and left Rob in that cage, resentfully locking to door behind me.

The sound of an alarm just as I was leaving the large concentration camp only made me run faster. It'd taken me more than a day just to travel back to Magnolia.  
But I didn't leave without giving them all another source of hope. Which reminds me… I should talk to Erza.

 **ERZA POV**

I'd had to roughly pin Natsu to a wall to get him to stop his outburst. As badly as I wanted to ask Loke more about the wellbeing of everyone else in my old cage, I felt like Natsu needed someone to talk some sense into him right now. Someone who had experience of what he was going through.

"Natsu, get a hold of yourself." I ordered sternly.

"But what if she's not okay? We need to go now-"

"The magic draining process may be painful but _it will not kill her_ , Natsu. We will help her when we can, but making Loke feel guilty for something he can't control is _not helping_. Do you understand?"

"And how the hell would you know?" he blurted, his eyes still clouded with rage.  
However, when I narrowed my eyes at him, the anger I saw melted away into what was hiding beneath it; the vulnerable yet undeniable fear that plagued us all.  
I didn't have to say anything for him to realise just how stupid that question was.

He eventually bowed his head, hiding his face, and I no longer felt it necessary to keep him pinned against the wall. Instead, I wrapped my arms around him in what I hoped was a comforting way. It was my turn to be the big sister again.

"How do you do it, Erza? Your friends have been in there for so long…"

I sighed. I asked myself the same question every day.

"Like I said before, all I can do is believe in their strength to get through this. And meeting every mage here has also given me hope for the future. Take your anger and direct it against the enemy, Natsu. Use it to get stronger so that when the time comes, you will have confidence in defeating them. That confidence is what keeps me going."

"And your friends' confidence in you is what keeps them going." Loke added, unexpectedly nearby.

I gazed up at him, my eyes widening in anticipation. This was the update I'd been waiting for for years.

"Just before I left the cage, I mentioned that you were a friend of mine and Lucy's and you were alive and well. They were… jubilant; those were the only legitimate smiles I'd seen in that place." He commented, leaning against the wall.

I cleared my throat as the sides of my lips pulled up, nodding a thank you so sincere I couldn't express it in words. The fact that they could still smile, that their spirits hadn't been broken, was all I needed to know for now.

I looked back at Natsu who was no longer bowing his head, however he was avoiding eye contact with the celestial spirit. I rolled my eyes, slipping back into big-sister mode.

"And is there anything you want to say to Loke, Natsu?" I asked condescendingly, watching with amusement as Loke smirked and Natsu pouted.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait, only to update with a short filler chapter, but please bear with me as the next chapter will show happened to Lucy.  
I hope it was clear that Rob intended to tell Lucy about meeting Loke, but they couldn't talk in front of the guards so he put it off. Then Lucy ran off to find Loke but instead found the dragons, so Rob never got to tell her.**

 **DeusSpesNostra – Thank you! And shh, nobody is supposed to know I'm secretly Mashima disguised as a British teenage girl ;3**

 **Nerdcandy – yeah, ever since I shared my thoughts on it, I've suddenly seen loads of art and fanfictions on tumblr describing that exact situation! I guess they could always blame it on Natsu's unknown heritage though, I like to think Natsu wouldn't be the overly suspicious type**

 **Thanks for all the reviews and follows and favourites!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	25. Chapter 25

**LUCY POV**

"Hey, quit squeezing my arms so hard, it's not like I'm going anywhere, asshole!" I yelled at one of the guards, revelling at the irritation etched onto his face.

I mean, yeah, I may not be able to get away from them, but I might as well make it unpleasant for them while they're at it.

"And why is it necessary for 5 of you to man-handle me? Do my noodle arms really scare you that much?" I whined loudly, making my voice as annoying as possible.

Without warning, I was suddenly pushed up against one of the jagged walls of the underground cage; I winced at the rock digging into my skin but still fought to maintain control over my almost overwhelming fear.

"Listen here, frea-OW!" the guard screamed as I bit down on the finger he had rudely shoved into my face. Serves him right. He was the one who jeered at Igneel as if he was nothing.

I waited in silence, clenching my jaw as the guard recovered, staring down all the other guards who threw disgusted looks my way.  
"Get the keys in the holder type store room." His voice, which was previously high pitched in pain, had gone several octaves lower. It now dripped with pure hatred and had a sinister quality to it, allowing me to confirm in my head that I was really in for it now.

As one of the guards rushed off, I was again dragged along the tunnel. However, this time I kept my mouth shut as all sorts of scenarios came into my head. Were they going to lock me in a room? Was the ultimate punishment solitary confinement?  
As much as solitary confinement would've been a walk in the park for some people, it terrified the crap out of me.

"The keys, sir." The guard eventually returned, handing over something to the one who ordered it. The keys jingled delicately, almost musically as they moved, and the majority of them seemed to be so gold they created their own light.

A lump formed in my throat when I realised why the mere presence of those keys felt so familiar.

"MY KEYS!" I screamed, struggling so hard I felt the hands on me loosen before they tightened exponentially. "GIVE THEM BACK! THEY'RE MINE!"

My façade instantly broke down as sobs left my body. My keys looked so _wrong_ when they were in the hands of these foul people. They belonged with me. _I needed to see my friends again._  
What if they started breaking them? Cutting the bonds I had with my oldest friends right before my eyes?

"All in due time, mage." He sneered.

My eyes widened. Was I really getting my keys back? Just like that? No, there had to be a catch somewhere.

The door next to me was then pushed open.  
And I understood.

"I thought we were done testing them out?" one of the guards asked from behind me.  
"Oh, we're not testing it today. This mage just happens to be expendable now that she's seen things she shouldn't have." The guard who sneered at Natsu's dad, who taunted me with my celestial keys, drawled close to my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

I was frozen, rooted to the ground in terror. I could hear my own heartbeat in my ears, and it suddenly felt like there was no oxygen available around me.

In that room was a single phoenix, eyeing me like a sacrifice.

Which I guess I was.

My naivety slapped me in the face as I realised that if I still had my keys, I couldn't be excused from this like the celestial mage Erza talked about. I had to fight it. Alone.

The phoenix roared and pulled against its chains which I knew would disappear as soon as I was alone in the room.

A sudden push on my back made me dig my heels into the ground, silently pleading anything, anyone to stop this from happening. I couldn't fight it by myself and I knew it.  
I frantically searched the room with my eyes; it was rather large, and by the looks of it quite damp, but there was nowhere to hide. Instead of the jagged rock that adorned the entirety of the underground cave walls, these walls were smooth and almost mirror-like.

I felt sickened when the idea that they were two-way mirrors came into my head. Which would mean that behind these walls, I would have an audience. People watching me as I fought for my life. Probably laughing and making bets on how long I would last.

My hands shook.

 _You know what? Fuck this. Fuck them._

As I was finally pushed into the room, the door locked firmly behind me and my keys disrespectfully thrown on the floor next to me, I felt almost like I had been possessed. Only two seconds ago, I was begging not to be in here, but now… now, I was just angry.  
It's almost like when I thought Gajeel was going to turn me in, but this time, I knew I had so much more to fight for.

I had to fight for my life.  
I had to fight for my spirits.  
I had to fight on behalf of every other mage in this god-forsaken place.  
I had to fight for my friends as well… after all, you're supposed to live for them, right?

With reflexes that rivalled Natsu's, I reached for my keys just as I heard the distinctive sound of chains moving; the phoenix was being released.

I found myself smiling when I felt the familiar warmth of my keys in my hand; it was almost like a hole in my soul had finally been filled.  
I smiled even though I knew what I was about to do would have major repercussions later.

 _Jheez, Aquarius is going to hate me for calling her out of a patch of dampness that barely resembles a puddle._

"Open, gate of Aquarius!" I yelled, not a moment too soon. To my relief, the trustworthy spirit refrained from yelling holes in my eardrums upon feeling the intense ball of heat coming towards me. The fiery attack was instantly doused, and the resulting hissing sound almost drowned out the multiple gasps I heard coming from behind the walls.

Definitely a two-way mirror, then.

"Lucy-" Aquarius's uncharacteristically worried outburst was cut short when the phoenix let out a screech, deciding to switch to close combat by darting towards us.  
I opened my mouth to scream at Aquarius to dodge, but instead gasped when she raised her urn, shooting a choppy, turbulent stream of water out of it. It hit the phoenix head-on, turning into steam as the two forces collided.

And to my surprise, the water attack was holding strong, succeeding in keeping both the flames and the proximity of the phoenix as far away as possible.

I'd never seen Aquarius in battle but this was… she was amazing.

"What are you waiting for, brat? Run!" She called to me, though her focus on the monster remained unbroken.

"I'm trapped in here! Look, just keep it up for a few more seconds, I know how to deal with it!" I called back confidently.

Gildarts had told me to practise bringing out more than one spirit… and it was now or never, right?

Ignoring the angry mutters of Aquarius complaining about the spoiled brat ordering her around (she loves me really), I grabbed the key of the dependable archer.

"Open-" I briefly saw Aquarius give me a shocked look, "gate of Sagittarius!"

I felt a large chunk of my magical energy leave my body, almost bringing me to my knees from the shock, but I knew instantly that I could cope with it.

"Same thing as last time, if you would." I requested, managing to give him a small grin as I breathed heavily.

Sensing the seriousness of the situation, he barely even uttered a "moshi moshi" before aiming for the phoenix's eye.

 _We did it,_ I thought to myself as the tension left my body.

But when the arrow hit the phoenix's eye, I didn't hear the satisfying crunch I'd heard last time. The fire didn't die down and the monster's eyes still glowed menacingly at me.

"Its eye… the weak spot…" I muttered hysterically to myself as I realised that I had celebrated prematurely.  
If the eye thing didn't work… how on earth was I going to do this?

"I'm sorry Lucy, I'm afraid I'm not of much use here." The horse spirit apologised, worry evident in his voice.

I wordlessly nodded and sent him back to conserve my magic, frantically trying to think of another way I could do this.

"Lucy, I can't-" Aquarius struggled to spit out, bringing me out of my daze. I realised with a jolt that she was still there, protecting me with all her strength. I cursed myself for momentarily forgetting about her fight, which looked like it was becoming more and more difficult for her to maintain as the phoenix put more power into its flames.

"Call another spirit, now" she ordered urgently. I could feel how close her gate was to closing as my power was being used up. I just needed to call out another spirit before she inevitably disappeared…

But that was the problem. I searched my brain for any spirit I could call out without them ending up as a literal shield for me, but none came to mind. Even Taurus' axe would end up just melting, and he'd get hurt trying to save me.

And I downright _refused_ to use them like that. I would die before I put my friends through that much pain.

So that was my fate, huh? At this point I didn't bother thinking about it. As I heard the snickering behind the walls, all I cared about was going down fighting, even if it was by myself.

Aquarius was looking at me, her eyes pleading behind the angry exterior.

"Thank you." I said before her gate closed; the last thing I saw of her was a panicked, disbelieving expression. Better than a pained one, I guess.

Now that the phoenix was free to pursue its target, it wasted no time in doing so. Gathering all my courage and resolve, I stood my ground, waiting for just the right moment.  
These monsters tended to have a problem with momentum, right?

Just as I felt the heat becoming unbearable, I quickly jumped to the side. If Natsu wasn't here to push me like last time, I'd have to do it for myself.

As soon as I regained my footing, I sprinted away from where the phoenix had crashed into the wall, making the walls shudder dangerously.

But as I registered earlier, there was nowhere to hide in this room. No rock to hide behind, no second door, no nothing. So I really shouldn't have been so shocked when the ball of flames flung at me knocked me off my feet, sending me rolling violently against the floor.

Then again, maybe it was the pain which sent my system into a state of shock. Or the way my head hit the ground, making my brain shake within my skull.

All I know is that everything went blurry and I couldn't bear to look at the definite damage to my legs.  
My hearing was still working, though. And judging by the volume of the roar, the phoenix was still approaching me. I could tell it was travelling at a much slower pace now that I wasn't moving, but it was still a matter of only a few seconds before I became toast.

On that thought, I moved my hand slightly and it came into contact with a loose rock on the ground. It was too heavy for me to lift with one hand in my current state, but I could do it with two arms. I just need to bide my time again…

I waited for what felt like hours rather than seconds in unbearable heat, playing dead, before I reckoned that the phoenix was close enough for me to make my move.

With a sharp movement of my arms, I grabbed the loose rock and slammed it into the fiery head of the monster, screaming as I momentarily buried my hands in the flames.

The blurry ball of fire made a noise like nails on a chalkboard, backing up slightly. Darkness clouded my vision, and I would have rejoiced at the thought of the fire going out had I not still felt the heat. No, this was just me losing consciousness, I guess.

… was this it?

"Princess."

The familiar voice provided a lifeline which I clung to as I tried to stay awake.  
I felt arms wrapping around my waist, and suddenly a loud, grating noise filled my ears as the rock beneath me was pulverized. I was being pulled along somewhere, which would have worried me but… it was cold.

Refreshingly cold.

The heat from the phoenix was gone, as well as the light behind my eyelids.

If I hadn't heard her voice, I would have guessed that I'd died.  
But somehow, she'd saved me.

"Virgo?" I whispered once the grating noise had stopped. I opened my eyes now to see that we were still underground somewhere in a dark room. Virgo's usually stoic eyes were glazed with concern as she lay me down gently, checking my body for injuries.  
Going by the way it felt, I doubted she'd have trouble finding some.

"I am sorry for not taking you further away princess, but I could not move you too far in case I inflicted more injury on-"  
"Thank you, Virgo. You saved me… but how…?" I interrupted her, attempting to sit up before gently being pushed back down.

"I would not deem it wise to waste any more energy, princess. I came through my own gate like brother." I assumed she meant Loke.  
"Punishment?" she added as an afterthought.

As my heart rate slowed down and the adrenaline left my system, I found myself chuckling at the spirit's usual request. It sounded foreign coming out of my mouth after my near-death experience, but it felt right at the same time.

It felt like something Natsu would do.  
I sighed. It always ended up coming back to him, didn't it?

"Search for her! She can't have gone too far!"  
My brief moment of reminiscing was interrupted by the sound of guards approaching from outside the dark room.

I quickly grabbed my keys from Virgo who had thankfully taken them with us, and closed her gate before she could protest.  
Who knows what they would do to her if she tried to protect me again?

The door suddenly burst open and guards gathered around me as I lay on the floor, glaring at them. One of them grabbed the keys out of my hand and I was powerless to stop them. I knew I was defenceless; if I tried to sit up, my head would spin, and then there was the issue of the inevitable burns on my legs and hands.

Nevertheless, I still had a mouth.

"I hope you psychopaths enjoyed the show." I spat bitterly.  
Before I knew it, their expressions turned to rage and they were raising their legs to kick me.

"Wait." A calm voice ordered. It wasn't loud or particularly authoritative, but the effect it had on the rest of the guards was instant. They all backed away from me.  
I assumed he was their leader.

Feeling vulnerable, I chanced sitting up, leaning against the wall for support.

"We will not kill this one. Her powers… interest me." I looked up at the leader wearily, not liking his tone one bit. I'd usually take that sort of thing as a compliment, but something about the way he said it made me dread what was to come.  
I feared for my spirits. What did he want with them?

"But she saw the dragons. We can't let her talk." One of the guards pointed out. She then proceeded to bow her head and back away as if she regretted speaking at all; like she was scared she'd done something wrong.

The leader seemed to ponder this a bit before a smirk adorned his face.  
I didn't like this. I didn't like this one bit.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Think positive, Lucy. You're alive. You defied all the odds by surviving. Your ashes won't be sent to your father, and your friends can keep their hope that you're okay.  
 _You're alive._

But I'm still stuck in here without any means of escaping. I have no idea what happened to Loke. My head's cleared up but that's only made the burns on my body feel more prominent.  
Oh, and I can't talk. Literally.

I wanted to scream at those bastards for jamming this metal contraption on my face, effectively preventing my jaw from moving. The only time I could take it off was when I was eating, and even that had to be in isolation.

The one thing I had to defend myself was my mouth, and they'd taken that away from me.  
Assholes.

After the whole ordeal, they finally took me back to my cage. It was ironically comforting to be back here again, most likely because of the people I'd met. Every one of them stood up once they saw me being thrown through the cage doors.

"Where the fuck did-" the tall boy – Mikazuchi started, before catching a full glimpse of me. His eyes widened in worry as he called the others to me.

"Ashley? Oh my god, your hands… your legs… you had to fight a monster…" Martez gawked at the burns, while I tried to communicate with my eyes that I didn't want her to worry about it.

"You really must've done something to piss them off…" Ramos muttered, sounding almost impressed as he examined the thing on my jaw.

 _It's because there are dragons here,_ I wanted to say. _If we broke the dragons out of here, they could easily burn the place down and we'd all be free. My friends would be reunited with their parents and everything would be okay. But I'm just so fucking powerless…_

The terror, the anger, the frustration of it all, forced a tear out of my eye.

"Hey! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you, I just-"

"She's not upset." Fernandez thankfully spoke my mind as the poor boy apologised for something that wasn't his doing.

I looked over at him and was slightly surprised to see a warm smile on his face.  
"She's angry and frustrated by this place." He continued. "Erza had that look in her eyes loads of times when she was in here."

I froze when I heard her name. How did they know that name?

"We would like to thank you for being her friend, Ashley. It means a lot to us to know that she is doing well out there." Sankar added, beaming at me along with the others.

My confusion must have been clear to them, as they all chuckled when they looked at me.

"Loke, my old spirit came to speak to us earlier. He… told us about you and Erza, and then escaped." Sankar said. I wanted to ask why it sounded like he was holding something back, but there were so many other things going on in my head.

Rob. His first name was Rob.  
And these other kids… they were Erza's friends. The ones she'd mentioned.  
I could only stare at them, eyes widened as the revelation dawned on me. And Loke… oh god, I was so glad he was okay.

"We were hoping to sort of ask you about them but…" Buchanan wordlessly finished his sentence by tapping the metal contraption on my face.

I glanced at the disappointed faces around me and shook my head. No way was I going to allow this stupid thing to deprive them of the knowledge they've been waiting for for years.

Plus, I might as well brush up on my charades skills while I'm at it, right?

The first thing I did was flex my muscles and pretend to punch the air whilst the others watched me, both muddled and slightly amused. It took a while for them to work out that I was trying to tell them how strong Erza was; for a few minutes they were convinced I had a concussion.

And even though my jaw was unable to move and I desperately needed cold water for my burns, all of that couldn't stop muffled giggles leaving my mouth as the others tried to guess what my over-enthusiastic actions meant.

 _This is good, Lucy. They haven't broken you yet. You can make it through this._ A voice inside my head comforted me.

And as I looked at the people around me, the kids and old man who were still smiling despite being in here for years, I didn't doubt that voice. Not one bit.

* * *

 **A/N: Aaah Rob didn't tell her about the rescue mission! Pretty sure I'm going to start writing the rescue mission next chapter, and then after that I don't have anything else planned for this story other than an epilogue or two. So enjoy the final battle, guys!**

 **CelestialTitania – that is an extremely valid point and quite frankly I'm appalled I forgot about them, haha**

 **As always, your reviews give me life and extra motivation so they are very welcome!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	26. Chapter 26

That week of dealing with picking up that damn pickaxe with burnt, blistered hands and putting all my strength into demolishing solid rock was… well, words wouldn't even describe it. All I knew was that I was struggling intensely.

Nevertheless, I didn't allow myself to give up. If not giving up meant that I occasionally nodded at Elfman when he gave me questioning looks, and I made myself go cross-eyed to make the little kids at the concentration camp laugh, then I could do it.

I got used to the metal contraption on my face; not being able to speak was starting to get a little easier as my cage mates and I began to form some sort of simple sign language.  
I was adapting, I guess.

But, however much I tried, I couldn't get rid of that nagging feeling that something bad was being planned regarding my spirits. The nagging feeling turned into a full-on panic when the guards called me out specifically to go with them rather than taking part in manual labour one morning.

I glared at them, raising one eyebrow, but they didn't think it necessary to answer my unspoken questions. Instead, as usual, I was chucked into a room and the door closed behind me.  
For a terrifying second I suspected that I was going to be faced with another monster, so I felt relieved when I realised that the only other person in the room was human.

Then, I realised who it was. It was the leader of the guards. The one who had an interest in my spirits.  
Needless to say, he held my treasured keyring in his hand.

"We meet again, celestial spirit mage."

I snorted. He reminded me of a cliché villain in a crappy film. Judging by the way his eyes narrowed, he recognised my reaction as a sign of disrespect.

"You're probably wondering why I have requested your presence."

I didn't answer. I wouldn't, even if I could. I just continued to glare at him.

"You see, I am interested in your power. You seem to be able to control very powerful beings." He held up my keys. "And I want to test it out."

I looked at him, bewildered. If he thought _he_ was going to be able to control my spirits, he was more delusional than I thought.

"Here's how it's going to work. I'm going to take that thing off your face." He started. I almost grinned when the various insults I had been aching to shout at him came to my lips, ready to be used.  
"But if you say anything or do anything without me telling you to do so, I will break one of your keys."

I couldn't prevent the way my body tensed up. The leader smiled at my sharp, shocked intake of breath; I'd accidentally confirmed for him that he now had a way to control me.  
All the insults left my head as I set my resolve that I absolutely could not piss this guy off.

"I assume we have an understanding?" he asked in a sickeningly sweet voice. I nodded.

Before taking the thing off my jaw, he put metal clamps on my wrists, loosely tying me to the wall in case I tried to run. They didn't have the red balls in them, so I assumed they wouldn't cancel my magic.

"What is your name?" he asked once my mouth was free to move.  
"Ashley." I replied, my voice quiet and strained from not using it for the last week.

"And my name is Atwood. Pleased to meet you." He responded, evidently enjoying my compliance.

 _Well I'm not fucking pleased to meet you, asshole._

I watched as he looked through my keys one by one, finally removing Taurus' key and handing it to me.  
"Call this one out. Remember, any funny business and I destroy the rest of your keys."

For the first time in my life, the presence of my keys did not bring me comfort. I reluctantly called the spirit out.

"I WILL PROTECT LU-"  
"Taurus, please stop."  
He instantly shut up, looking back at me. I gave him a serious look, trying to communicate to him that I had things under control, even though I knew I didn't.  
Thankfully, after a few seconds, he lowered his axe.

"Interesting. Your spirits will do anything you tell them to, am I correct?" Atwood asked. The glint in his eye as he looked at the bull spirit made me feel nauseous.

"I wouldn't make them do anything they didn't want to do." I replied shortly.  
"That doesn't answer my question, Ashley." He drawled. Glancing at the way he was fiddling with my keys, I cleared my throat nervously.

"According to our contracts, yes. But they have free will-"  
Atwood held up his hand impatiently, cutting me off.

"Make your spirit smash this wall." He ordered, gesturing to the wall next to him. I considered asking why, but decided against it. He probably wanted to get a measure on Taurus' strength.

"Taurus?" I glanced at the spirit next to me who was looking murderously at the leader of the guards. "Could you destroy that wall, please?"

His attention switched to me.  
"Anything for your body, Luuuu-cy." His usual way of speaking made me roll my eyes with amusement. I'd really missed my friends, no matter how perverted they tended to be.

As he approached the wall, my eyes drifted to Atwood's worryingly unimpressed expression. Before the resonating sound of collapsing rock filled the room, I could've sworn I heard him mutter "not obedient enough" to himself.

"You treat your weapons rather casually, Lucy." Atwood said once the dust had cleared. I flinched when he called me by my first name, no doubt having picked it up from Taurus. The use of last names only in this place instantly made more sense to me.

"They're not weapons. They're my friends."  
I said it without thinking, like a reflex. My heart rate increased as panic flooded my brain; would that statement piss him off in any way?

To my surprise, though, he simply laughed. It was intimidating laughter which sent uncomfortable shivers down my spine. I looked up to see his expression and instantly knew something bad was going to happen.

"Well let's see if your 'friend' would hurt his master if she told him to."

That's when I started to shake.

"I WILL NOT HARM-"  
"Taurus!" I almost screamed upon seeing Atwood's grip tighten on the bull spirit's key, which he'd taken back from me. I shook my head, trying to clear it. This was getting way out of hand.

"Atwood… Sir…" I tried to speak calmly; I knew I couldn't get on his bad side. "His contract states that he has to protect me. It's against his nature… I can't…" I stopped speaking when Atwood's eyes narrowed.

"Tell him to break your arm. Your left arm, seeing as you don't need it for summoning. And don't talk back to me again or I will break every single one of your keys." All the charisma, however little of it remained before, was now gone from his personality.  
I realised why all the other guards were so scared of him.

I looked at my now fragile-looking keys before making eye contact with Taurus. He recognised the situation, and looked entirely broken with both rage and sorrow. His expression made a tear fall from my eye. This was going to hurt him just as much as it hurt me.  
But there was no way out of it. My arm would heal, but those keys could never be replaced. At least it was an easy choice.

"Break my arm, Taurus." I said quietly.  
"But luuu-cy-"  
"Do it. Please. I'll be okay, I promise."

I looked away when his hands took my arm. I tried to think of things to distract me from the inevitable pain sure to follow. Stargazing with my mother. Finding all my new keys. The day when I first met Natsu. Finding out everyone else was a mage.

"I'm sorry, Luuucy" Taurus said, his voice shaking.  
"I'm sorry too, Taurus." I replied, squeezing my eyes shut even tighter.

The next thing I knew, pain exploded up my arm, momentarily overtaking all my thoughts as I cried out in agony.

It took what felt like minutes for the pain to subside enough for me to come to my senses again. I concentrated on controlling my breathing as tears fell from my face.  
I could do this. I trusted Taurus. He would've made it a clean break which would heal fast. No permanent damage done.

"I'm okay, Taurus." My voice wobbled, making it sound less convincing.  
I heard the sound of clothes tearing before his large hands moved my arm as gently as possible into a makeshift sling, which he then tied around my neck to support my broken limb.

"So it seems obeying you has priority over protecting you. Interesting." Atwood commented thoughtfully.

 _No, you idiot,_ I thought. _Saving my spirits has priority over my protection._

"Make your spirit go back. Call the water one here instead." Atwood ordered.

I nodded at Taurus, and was glad to see him nod back before I obeyed Atwood. Whatever happened, our bond remained unbroken.

I was given a cup of water to summon Aquarius from. I knew she'd be far from happy about that.

"You brat! Why didn't you call another spirit when I told you to? You could've been killed!" she was yelling at me, red in the face as soon as the gate opened.  
It only struck her as an afterthought to actually wonder why I'd summoned her. But once she took in the sling on my arm and the way I was still trembling uncontrollably, her rage was directed at the other person in the room.

She raised her urn. I almost didn't stop her in time.  
"Don't attack him!" I yelled.  
"And why the hell not? He's made you go all pathetic on me!" she argued with a sneer, still holding her urn up.

"Because I will break every single one of her keys if she so much as speaks back to me." Atwood arrogantly answered for me.  
Aquarius instantly lowered the urn.

"I believe I have your co-operation, then." Atwood grinned smugly, before speaking into a phone.  
"Bring the two dragon slayers in here now."

My eyes widened as my dread increased exponentially. Dragon slayers? Does that mean they were caught? Gajeel, Natsu and Wendy? Oh god, no, they couldn't be here…

A glass box was wheeled in, containing two unfamiliar boys who looked about the same age as Wendy. I admittedly felt a little relieved that my friends weren't here, but it still wasn't right that those two kids had to witness whatever Atwood was planning to do with Aquarius.

It occurred to me that those two boys, who were roughly beating on the glass trying to get out, were the kids the two dragons were talking about. Ryos and Sting.  
If only they knew their dragon parents were a few hundred metres away from where they stood now…

"Hey! Let us out of here and fight us!" the blonde one shouted, and my gaze landed on him instantly. He reminded me a little bit of Natsu…

"Lucy." Atwood called my attention to him. "Tell Aquarius to drown them."

The boys stopped pounding on the glass. I stared up in horror at the man, while I felt Aquarius' magic spike dangerously. This- this was too far. There was no way I was going to do that. No way in hell.

"No. I- I won't." I stuttered after finding my voice.

"If you don't, I'll break your dear spirit's key." He reminded me.

Never before in my life had I felt so trapped. I didn't want to lose my first friend; the first key I'd inherited from my mother. But I wouldn't make her kill those two boys either. All I could do was stare at the man in front of me, forcing me to make an impossible decision.

"S- She's like Yukino." I heard the dark-haired boy stutter worriedly to his companion.

"Do it now, Lucy." Atwood warned, holding Aquarius' key in both hands, ready to break it. At this sight, I felt something inside me begin to tear apart.

"NO! STOP! I'LL DO ANYTHING, JUST NOT THAT! PLEASE STOP!" I shouted, straining against the metal cuffs around my wrists. I instantly stopped upon feeling the stabbing pain in my broken arm.

"I won't die." Aquarius finally spoke up. I was surprised to hear how calm she sounded in a situation like this. "I won't die if my key breaks. I just won't ever see you again."  
I realised she was putting on a façade when her voice broke.

"I can't… I can't just lose you like that…" I sobbed. There had to be another way. There had to be.

"If you don't order her to do it in the next 5 seconds, I'm breaking her key." The man sneered.

I made eye contact with Aquarius.  
I realised that this would have to be goodbye. I was weak. Helpless. There was nothing I could do.

"I love you." I whispered as a goodbye. It wasn't near enough to express our extensive bittersweet friendship, but I knew she would understand.

"I'll miss you, Lucy."

A resounding snap echoed through the room.  
Aquarius, as well as a huge part of my soul, disappeared into nothing.

The room was in complete and utter silence apart from my ragged breathing. I stared at the spot where she once was. Where she was taken right before my eyes.

And I felt rage in the form of magic filling my veins. I knew exactly what to do. Atwood would not get away with this. I would kill him.

"Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens..." I chanted. My voice sounded layered, more powerful than I'd ever heard it. I poured everything into the words, relieved I had an outlet for my grief.

"All the stars, far and wide...  
Show me thy appearance...  
With such shine."

The walls were crumbling. I focused on picturing the constellations, drawing power from them. The room burst into colour as a space-like scene enveloped both me and Atwood.

"Oh Tetrabiblos...  
I am the ruler of the stars..." my voice was getting louder and louder. The power I was gathering was almost overwhelming.

"Aspect become complete...  
Open thy malevolent-"

I stopped, blinking a few times to clear my vision as my jaw was met with resistance as it tried to move. No… no, it was almost complete, I was so close…

Atwood stood there, looking slightly shaken, but he was grinning cruelly as my spell melted away. He'd placed the metal contraption on my face.  
I was now completely helpless. As usual.

"It seems you're too much trouble to keep, Lucy. Your power is no use to me if you refuse to make your spirits useful."

I glared at him, trying to convey all my frustration, anger, and hatred to him through my eyes alone. However, I faltered when I saw him take a gun out of his pocket.

He pointed it towards me. I could hear the two young dragon slayers frantically shouting at Atwood, telling him to stop.  
But I knew it was too late. I closed my eyes.

What was it that Natsu said? You're supposed to live for your friends.  
 _I'm sorry, Natsu. There's no way out of this for me._ _And I never got to tell you how I feel about you… but you should know that I'll be with my mother. I'll be okay. You'll have to do the living for the both of us. And that goes for everyone in the Saturday detention group.  
I hope you guys never end up here…_

A loud bang made me flinch.  
Funny, I expected getting shot to hurt. I mean, if I was dead, then I wouldn't be able to feel my body, right?  
I moved my fingers. Yep. Still alive.

That was when I felt the room get hotter. An animalistic roar entered my ears. I kept my eyes shut as I tried to understand what had just happened.

The only thing in this place that could create this sort of heat was…

Oh god. A phoenix.  
Not again. I couldn't take it.

I curled up next to the wall, trying to make myself as small as possible. I could hear Atwood screaming in pain, and knew that it was only a matter of time until the phoenix came for me too.

Then again… why was it attacking Atwood over me? Was it defective?

I was about to look up until I felt the heat get closer to me. Atwood's screams had stopped. I trembled, shying away from the warmth.  
However, it had yet to become unbearable like last time.

"Luce?"

A shockwave went through my body upon hearing the voice.  
I opened my eyes and slowly looked up, not daring to believe that he was really here.

 _But he was.  
_  
He was kneeling in front of me, but still keeping his distance. There were definite differences in his appearance compared to the last time I saw him. His skin was paler and there were large bags under his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days. He was wearing the same standard prisoner uniform as I was. I don't know why, but somehow he'd become a lot more… intense. And his eyes… oh god, his eyes… he looked like he was shouldering all the pain I felt.

But it was still him. It was still Natsu.  
And I instantly knew that everything was going to be okay.

I wanted to say his name, but couldn't.  
However, as he stared at me, he must've registered the change in my eyes from distress to relief.

The next thing I knew, I was in his warm embrace. I leaned against him, letting new tears fall from my eyes. He was shaking as he held on to me, and I wished that these metal cuffs weren't restraining my wrists so that I could stroke his hair.

"Shit, Luce, I nearly lost you, I-"

"That was so _cool_!" the blonde kid interrupted the moment, gawking at Natsu in awe. "Ryos, did you _see_ that? He just barged into the room and beat the crap out of that old guy, like an actual dragon!"

Natsu glanced at the boy, and a muffled giggle left my mouth when I saw a slight blush on his face.  
 _Looks like you have yourself a little fanclub there, Pinky._

Upon hearing my sad attempt at a laugh, Natsu focused his attention back onto me, clearing his throat.

"Okay, first things first, tell me how to get these cuffs and that face thingy off you."

I raised an eyebrow. _Really, Natsu? You want me to tell you?_

"Oh right, you can't talk. Show me, then." He corrected himself with a grin.  
God, I'd missed his smile.

I pointed towards Atwood's slightly charred body. I'm sure he kept the keys for the cuffs in his pocket. As for the thing restricting my jaw, I had no idea how to take that off.

A minute later, I was clutching my remaining celestial keys, whilst Natsu had taken my newly freed hand to pull me up to my feet. I pointed towards the glass cage that still held the two young dragon slayers.

"On it." the fire dragon slayer said, before motioning for the two boys to move to one side. Another loud crash, and they were free.

"Lucy?" the dark-haired one, Ryos, addressed me timidly. "T-thank you. We're really sorry about your spirit, w-we have a friend and she would be devastated if-"  
I interrupted him by placing my hand on his head, ruffling his hair. I glanced at Sting, who was looking at me uneasily, and nodded gently at him. It wasn't their fault. I tried to tell them with my eyes that it was okay, but I couldn't help feeling the pricking sensation of new tears as I thought about Aquarius.

"What happened?" Natsu asked apprehensively. I shook my head, looking down.

"Right. We can talk Later. I've got a few more butts to kick before we get outta here." He grabbed my unbroken arm, leading me out through the hole in the wall where the door once was.  
And it was only then that the absurdity of the situation hit me.

WHAT WAS THIS IDIOT DOING HERE? WHY ON EARTH DID HE ALLOW HIMSELF TO GET CAUGHT? AND NOW HE WAS GOING TO GET INTO MORE TROUBLE!

I dug my heels into the ground, halting us both. Natsu spun around and seemed to shrink at my expression.

"Jheez Luce, I was wondering when you'd turn into scary Lucy."

I flicked his forehead.

"I know you're angry, but I can explain! I'm not the only one here, it's a full on rescue mission, and we're getting everyone out. Didn't Rob tell you that?"

My eyes widened.

"He didn't? Damn that old man, he promised Loke he would… Anyway, a few of us got caught on purpose and pretended to be celestial wizards with the replicated keys. There are people fighting on the inside as well as the outside right now."

 _Our small detention group against this whole place?_

"It's not just us; like there's a new guy who's good at frying machinery. He's freeing other mages in the camp so that they can fight as well."

"Is it me or is he reading her mind?" Sting whispered loudly to Ryos.

"Anyway, you two need to find Laxus. Tall blonde electric dude the size of a bull. You can't miss him. He'll sort out those magic cancelling cuffs of yours, and then you can fight if you're up for it." Natsu said to the younger dragon slayers, grinning.

Natsu pointed them off in the right direction before turning back to me. His expression was confident, but I noticed the way his eyes lingered on my injuries. The burnt legs. The broken arm. The blistered fingers.  
He was going to tell me to stay back and let him fight alone again.

"You ready to get everyone out of here, Luce?" was all he said. I searched his eyes, and they were sincere. Did this mean… he wanted me to fight alongside him?

"I'll stay by your side, of course. I'm not letting you get any more injured." He continued with an easy smile and excitement evident in his voice.  
I know he couldn't see it, but I gave him the biggest smile I've had in ages. I grabbed his arm, leading him towards the fight.

After what I'd just been through, I had plenty of anger to take out on these fucking guards.

"You know, I'm kinda disappointed." Natsu drawled as we ran. I looked back at him questioningly.  
"When I pictured rescuing you, you'd always have my scarf around your neck so that you could give it back to me. Just like you said you would the night you got captured. Should've known they would've taken it away from you." He said dejectedly.

 _It's with Igneel_ , I wanted to say.

Igneel.  
Natsu's father.  
Who he'd been searching for for years.  
He was here.

I skidded to a halt and grabbed Natsu's arm, trying to tell him with my eyes that I knew where his dad was.

"Oh look Luce, I don't blame you. We can just find it afterwards."

I stamped my feet in frustration. The one time Natsu decides to not understand my non-verbal communication, it had to be now?

"All right, well when you want to stop being a weirdo, we can go and fight."

I huffed loudly, deciding to drop it until I found a way to get this damn thing off my face. Until then, I would gladly fight by Natsu's side.

* * *

 **A/N: god, this was difficult to write at some parts. Hope you guys don't hate me too much! Please, if you have hatred to spare, direct it towards Mashima for that fucking 'under the bandage' tease. Manga readers will know what I'm on about.**

 **Compucles: I must confess, that idea didn't actually occur to me. But now that I think about it, Lucy's only way of surviving was staying as far away from the phoenix as possible. Going into Horologium would have made her a sitting duck until his time ran out, and the phoenix would be waiting for her, so there's my half-assed reasoning. Thanks for the review!**

 **Fanficlove2014: damn, that's an old episode. I really need to re-watch Fairy Tail! And I think Virgo may have been able to tunnel her out, but the results would be the same; Lucy still would have been caught and brought back into the camp. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Thanks for all the other reviews, favourites and follows as well!**

 **-usnoozulose**


	27. Chapter 27

"Lucy!" was the only coherent shout I could hear before my body was gripped by a brunette octopus.

We'd just entered the massive cave where all the mages had been trapped.  
Past tense.

It was now a flamboyant circus of shouts, screams, flashes of light… and the feeling of danger alone was enough to set the adrenaline off into my veins. The newly freed half-starved and overworked mages were fighting the overwhelming number of guards as if they'd been training all their lives for it. People were flying everywhere and there were unconscious bodies on the floor. I'd never seen anything like it, not even in movies.  
My first instinct was to jump in and start fighting, but then Cana decided to drunkenly leap onto my body at first sight.

I must say, though. Seeing her familiar face made me smile a little more behind my jaw-restricting device. I wrapped my unbroken arm around her tight.

"Jheez Lucy, you must've had a lot to say to those bastards." she commented after several moments of weirdly serene hugging amongst the surrounding chaos.  
I couldn't put my finger on it, but something was… different about her. Had she changed that much since I last saw her?

"You done with the camera stuff yet, Cana?" Natsu asked abruptly.  
I gave him a questioning look, but his attention was drawn to Cana who replied with a short "Not yet."

 _Camera stuff? What camera stuff?_

"You'd better finish it up then, don't'ya think?"  
"Oh please, you're just jealous I'm getting all toucy-feely with Lucy." Cana laughed before winking at me, taking one last concerned look at my arm and rushing off determinedly, flinging cards dangerously at guards as she ran.

I stared after her, attempting not to blush but predominantly trying to understand what had changed about her.

"You didn't think she'd turn up drunk to your rescue, did you?" Natsu asked from beside me.  
My eyes widened at the realisation. Alcohol was practically the girl's salvation.

So… this was Cana when she was sober and serious.

"Come on, let's see if we can get that thing off your face already."  
That was when Natsu started leading me towards what looked like a thunderstorm in the middle of what used to be the dimly-lit cave.

Needless to say, it wasn't an easy path. I must've ducked at least 9 flying guards and dodged several attacks before Natsu finally stopped me. I admit, I expected him to use his magic to fight them off a lot more effectively than this. Why was he holding back so much? Was he tired from fighting Atwood?

"Call out a spirit to cover us, would you?" he asked.

This confused me to no end. Why wasn't he using his magic?

 _I can't call out a spirit anyway. I need to say the incantation aloud._

"C'mon, Luce. Don't tell me your spirits won't help you at a time like this." Natsu chided at my non-verbal hesitation, using hand-to-hand combat alone to knock out the guards that came close to us. He was struggling with the sheer amount, though.

Shaking the uncertainty out of my thoughts, I quickly picked out Aries' key and focused my magic into it.

 _Come on, this has to work. For whatever reason, Natsu can't use his magic… I can do this… open, gate of Aries._

My eyes widened when I started to feel her presence, but she wasn't all there yet…

 ** _Open, gate of Aries._**

"I'm sorry."  
the ram spirit appeared next to me, and I would've hugged her if another two flying guards hadn't forced us to duck.

My eyes landed on Natsu, who was evidently struggling to fight three guards at once. Aries must have noticed my panicked expression because not a second later, the three attackers were snoozing peacefully inside a fluffy pink cloud.

"Nice one, sheep girl!" Natsu laughed before grabbing my arm to pull me along again, this time flanked by a slightly disgruntled Aries.

The closer we got to the apparent thunderstorm, the more I could make out a single large figure in the middle of it. Natsu didn't have to call his name for me to realise this was the so-called 'electric dude' he had mentioned to the two boys.  
To my amazement, the pure electricity only seemed to be hitting the guards, allowing us into a small dome of protection when we took the terrifying leap through the curtain of lightning. Whoever this dude was, he was bloody powerful.

"Yeah well we're _third_ generation, so we could definitely beat a second generation slayer like you! Right, Ryos?"  
Ah, it seems the two boys had beaten us here. A sudden strike of electricity hit Ryos' wrist, but he didn't flinch. Instead, there was a distinctive noise of breaking glass, and the magic-cancelling cuffs fell from his arms.

"Whatever" replied the seemingly unaffected man who I knew instantly was Laxus. I could tell by the increase in voltage around us that however uninterested he looked by Sting and Ryos' claim, it definitely pissed him off a little.

"I could take you on any day now that I can use my magic again!" Sting boasted, prompting a face-palm out of his black-haired companion.

"Hey kid, go fight some guards now and then you can beat up Laxus all you want." Natsu interjected, strategically pushing the newly freed dragon slayers towards the side of the fight with the loudest explosions.

"I'm not-"

"Quit complaining lightning rod, now are you going to get this thing off Lucy's face or should I tell Mira you're wasting time riling up some kids?" Natsu interrupted Laxus.

The slight twitch of Laxus' eye almost made me push Natsu to the side to save him from an inevitable lightning bolt to the face. Luckily, though, the large man must've built an immunity to Natsu's idiocy at some point, as he stayed composed and averted his attention to me.

"Lucy, huh? I've heard a lot about you." Was all he muttered as he examined the contraption on my face, still maintaining the electricity surrounding us.

I stayed still for a few seconds as he looked closer, internally hoping he wouldn't accidentally fry my eyebrows off.

"So are you gonna get it off or not?" Natsu asked impatiently.  
Laxus sighed and took a step back. Not good news, then.  
"It's finger-print activated. Blondie, whoever put it on you is the only one who can take it off. My magic ain't gonna help." He confessed, sounding frustrated underneath his layer of nonchalance.

 _But I have something important to tell you all…_

"It's alright, Luce. We can just find his unconscious body and-"  
"Bunny girl!" "Lucy!"

A wave as déjà vu hit me as yet another octopus flew into me, only this time it had blue hair and was considerably smaller. It was accompanied by a large weight on the top of my head, ruffling my hair.

 _Wendy. Gajeel. I know where your dragons are…_

"Nice battle scars, bunny girl." The black-haired dragon slayer commented stiffly once he'd taken my appearance in. I would've grinned if I could; it was oddly satisfying knowing my injuries impressed him.  
"Lucy! Your arm! Your-"  
"As relieved as we are to see you, Lucy, I cannot let Wendy heal you. She's tired herself out already as it is and she must reserve it for life or death emergencies." Carla interrupted Wendy'y outburst, and I nodded in understanding.

"Any news iron breath?" Natsu asked

"Yeah. Levy's spotted big-ass reinforcements coming our way."

A melancholy silence followed as everyone looked to the fight surrounding them. The prisoners were barely holding up as it was… there was no way we could handle more…

 _Unless we freed the bloody dragons._

I huffed in frustration, accidentally turning everyone's attention to me.  
"Do you have an idea?" Wendy asked.

I nodded eagerly. Maybe she would understand me?

 _The dragons are here!_ I thought desperately as I did flying motions with my arms, pointing to the three dragon slayers.  
Their confused faces only made me more exasperated, but I refused to be discouraged.

 _YOUR DRAGON PARENTS ARE HERE! THEY CAN HELP US! THERE ARE LITERAL DRAGONS HERE AND NOBODY KNOWS-_

"I think the stress has gone to bunny girl's head…" Gajeel deadpanned.

 _THE FIRST THING I'M GOING TO DO WHEN I GET THIS THING OFF MY FACE IS ASK YOUR DRAGON PARENT TO DISCIPLINE YOU APPROPRIATELY AND-_

"Jesus Christ woman, shut the hell up!"

I blinked. The red-haired guy who shouted that was looking straight at me, with newly-broken cuffs at his feet… was he talking to me?

"Yes I'm talking to you!" he growled, squaring up to me. "The first thing I hear once I get these stupid cuffs off is you internally screaming about dragon this and parent that… do you even know how loud you are?"

 _He… you can…_

"I can hear you over literally everything else in here, and you aren't even speaking aloud. It would be impressive if it wasn't the most annoying sound I've heard in years." He spat, glaring at me. "Now if you'll kindly think quieter, I'll gladly fight these bastards-"

Before I knew it, pink hair had blocked my vision of the angry mind-reading man.  
"First of all, don't speak to Lucy like that. Second of all…" Natsu hesitated, looking back at me with wide eyes. "What's all this about… dragon parents?" he asked uncertainly.

Making up my mind, I looked around him and straight at the red-haired man who was eyeing Natsu murderously.

 _Oi you, tell them exactly what I'm thinking._ I ordered. I mean, if he was going to be rude to me, I wouldn't bother asking nicely.

"Or what?" he retorted.

 _Or I'll sing 'I'm a little teacup' over and over again in my head. Loudly._

The smug satisfaction I got when he blanched in defeat was beyond words.

Sighing loudly, the man turned to the perplexed dragon slayers surrounding me.  
"She says she knows where your dragon parents are. They're being kept in magic-cancelling cages in the underground maze here. Oh, and-" he continued as an additional thought, turning to Gajeel, "She's going to ask your parent to punish you for calling her crazy."

He looked almost amused as he took in the shocked faces of the three dragon slayers.  
"Anything else?" he asked me.

 _No. Thank you._

"Alright well, I'm off to-"

 _What's your name?_ I asked, surprising both of us.

"Cobra." He answered after a few seconds, before jumping into the fight. I didn't have to read his mind to know that wasn't his actual name, but I was happy he replied anyway.

"Igneel… he's here? Grandine and Metallicana as well?" Natsu asked, sounding like a lost child.

I simply nodded, putting my hand on his shoulder.

 _They didn't just leave you guys. They were taken._

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go find them and settle this damn fight!" Gajeel announced, a huge grin overtaking his face.

Relieved now that they received the information, I eagerly motioned for them to follow me into the guards-only area. I was pretty sure I remembered at least some of the route, and maybe their sense of smell could do the rest…

"Princess!"

Oh great, another octopus latching onto me. A ginger one this time… Loke?  
Upon the realisation, I hugged him back, relieved to see him doing well. Being out of the spirit world this long… I had no doubt now that he was a leading force behind this rescue mission.

"Shit, you're hurt…" he muttered while I rolled my eyes and ruffled his hair. He looked into my eyes and I saw pain mixed relief swimming in his expression.

"Lucy, I'm so sorry, I could've prevented all of this-"

"Quit beating yourself up and join us in finding our dragons, cat." Natsu thankfully interrupted Loke's needless apology, and it had the desired distracting effect.  
"Your dragons? They're here? If they helped us…"

"Then we would win this fight hands down." Ryos finished for him.  
I jumped at the unexpected appearance of the two younger dragon slayers.  
"We're coming with you!" Sting announced.

With a hidden chuckle, I nodded and ran off in the right direction, weaving through the fighting flanked by the strongest zodiac and 5 very excited dragon slayers.  
Needless to say, the body count being thrown into the air doubled.

As we got further and further through the maze, the number of enemies began to dwindle. Eventually it got to a point where we'd only have to knock out the occasional guard. Meanwhile, I'd managed to get completely and utterly lost again. Not like I was going to admit that though…

"Why ain't you using your magic, salamander?" I heard Gajeel ask behind me. I perked up; was Natsu still not using his magic?  
"I'm… -"

Before he could finish, the dragon slayers simultaneously stopped dead in their tracks.

"Do you smell them?" Loke asked.  
"No… it's their voices…" Natsu replied.

I would've assumed hearing his dad for the first time in years would make him elated but… he was shaking. He looked alarmed. They all did. Something was wrong.

"They sound like they're in pain." Wendy said, near tears.

All that was heard in the dimly lit underground passage after that was frantic footsteps as we all sprinted towards the dragons.  
Please don't let us be too late… Please… The dragon slayers can't lose their parents again…

* * *

 **A/N: after long last, I've finally got my shit together enough to update! Why can't Natsu use his magic? What's all this stuff about cameras? What's happened to the dragons? All will be revealed… If uni work doesn't keep me too busy…**

 **First of all, I'm sorry it took so long to update. I've put in my bio that I've gone on hiatus and to be realistic, that probably still stands since I don't find myself with much spare time these days. However, I will still try to write when I can!**

 **sebbyloverTMI: I'll definitely try to put some brotherly stuff between ryos and gajeel if it fits into the story, thanks for the suggestion!**

 **Mary Eliza Von Teese: I don't actually plan on putting any spoilers in this, especially all the zeref stuff in the latest manga chapters. It wouldn't make sense anyway, so don't worry!**

 **All the people who were pissed off that I killed aquarius again: you're welcome**

 **Thank you for all the reviews and please leave a review to let me know if anyone is still reading this! Who knows, my motivation to write might have a correlation with the amount of reviews I get…**

 **Until next time,  
-usnoozulose**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N:  
For people just opening this page: the story continues after this author's note, just in case you want to skip it. I'm not gonna troll everyone by updating my story for the first time in more than a year only for it to be a bloody author's note, am I? **

**So… yeah. I've been absent a while. And in my defence, I'd written and re-written this chapter about 5 times before I kind of gave up on it.  
You know when you read a book and think everything's kinda gonna tie up nicely in the end but it just doesn't and you're left thinking "wtf happened?" (I'm looking at you, Rick Riordan, How dare you give me that ending to Heroes of Olympus)  
Well, that's what I felt was happening to my story. I'd loved what I had written but I didn't like where it was going.**

 **And to all the people who messaged me, who commented letting me know you wanted me to finish this, I want you to know that I genuinely felt bad for discontinuing. I wouldn't have continued this without your encouragement.**

 **I know a lot of people stop their stories because of issues and bereavement but you guys can rest assured I'm fine (mostly), I'm just a lazy perfectionist.**

 **Anyway, one day I was reading through what I'd written and I decided I knew how I was going to end the story. Just like that. I'm as confused as you are.**

 **So here you go. Let's hope I'm on my way towards actually finishing this!**

 **-usnoozulose**

* * *

 _I would've assumed hearing his dad for the first time in years would make him elated but… he was shaking. He looked alarmed. They all did. Something was wrong._

 _"They sound like they're in pain." Wendy said, near tears._

 _All that was heard in the dimly lit underground passage after that was frantic footsteps as we all sprinted towards the dragons._

 _Please don't let us be too late… Please… The dragon slayers can't lose their parents again…_

 **NATSU POV**

One second, we were running, the distant explosions of the fighting behind us providing the perfect background music to the badass mission we were about to complete.  
I mean, yes, I was worried for my dad, but it's not like there was any chance we would reach them too late. My dad was tougher than that. I was just so excited to see him and show him how tough I'd gotten by kicking some ass. Leading the way to the dragons was actually _fun_.

But the next second, it happened.  
An explosion loud enough to hurt my ears shook the entire underground tunnel, and I only noticed the giant crack in the wall after it was too late.

The ceiling started crumbling. Everyone stopped and covered their heads.

It all happened so fast. In that instant, my initial thrill was killed by the fact that when the dust settled, Lucy and Loke were the only ones not in sight.

"LUCY?" I called her name desperately, pushing on the pile of rocks that had closed off the tunnel almost directly behind me and the other dragon slayers. "LUCY, LOKE, ANSWER ME!"

I waited a few seconds, my heart rate increasing after every silent beat.  
I couldn't lose her.  
Not again.

"We're okay!" Loke's voice barely carried through the rock barrier, and I sighed in relief. "Just go on! Lucy's pointing somewhere so I assume she's got an idea of where to go!"

I shook my head. No way was I going to let that girl out of my sight again.  
"Luce, stop being a weirdo and try to budge some rocks! You'll get through in no time!" I shouted, digging my fingers painfully into the nearest crevice and pulling.  
It was pointless but there wasn't anything you couldn't overcome, right?

Right?

"God damn it Natsu, we have to go!" Gajeel growled, grabbing hold of the scruff of my neck.  
"But-"  
"Bunny girl's got the lion! I don't like it either, but right now our parents need us!"

I took a deep breath as I heard two sets of footsteps running away from the other side of the rock wall. Gajeel was right. We didn't have any more time to lose. All I could do was trust Lucy. She'd survived this place for long enough. She knew what she was doing.  
With Igneel's image in my mind, I ignited my fist and started running towards him once more, catching up with the other 4 dragon slayers.

"I was getting worried when you stopped using your magic earlier, Natsu." Wendy said between pants.  
"Yeah well…" shit. How was I going to explain something like that? There was nothing wrong with my magic; I had plenty of fire power I was raring to use but…  
I just couldn't use it around Luce. Not after seeing those burns all over her. And the way she shook before she realised I wasn't a monster? The way she seemed to keep away from all sources of fire in the tunnels almost like she was doing it subconsciously? Did she even realise how terrified she looked when she laid eyes on the very thing I gained my magic power from?

It was all guess work but… I gathered that she'd developed a fear of fire. I didn't want to risk frightening her even more, even if it meant not using magic around her.

"They're up ahead! Get ready!" the small blonde kid said, prompting us all to run faster, not slowing down in the slightest in order to open the door in a traditional manner. In my opinion, the loud BANG produced by pulverising the door was a great way to announce our entrance, dragon-slayer style.  
Even Wendy – cute, innocent Wendy was exuding a deadly aura as we took in the scene before us.

Cannons pointed at our parents. My dad, who I hadn't seen in years, was pushing up against the side of a gigantic cage furiously even though his legs were shaking. If I hadn't grown up with him, I'd be terrified of him breaking through.  
Instead, I felt a huge sense of pride.  
This is my dad. And I'd found him. Finally.

But then… the cannon shot something at him. And he fell, as did the other dragons.

Our attention was drawn towards the tiny humans (when your only size comparison is a bunch of dragons, everything seems smaller) who were shouting something like blah blah blah INTRUDERS blah blah blah GET RID OF blah blah.  
I don't really know what they were saying. The fury bubbling up inside me at seeing my own dad fall was flowing through my veins, pumping in my ears and creating a symphony of cloudy vicious thoughts.

I smelt iron which reminded me of the sickening smell of blood. The wind picked up to the other side of me, not to be mistaken with a soft breeze. The lighting in the cave started flickering, but I wasn't sure whether or not that was just the adrenaline changing my senses. Oh, and it was getting really, really hot.

My body moved without me having to think about it. One blast of fire to a guard's face, and I'd landed a few punches on others before the first guy even hit the ground.  
I decided to keep count.

I'd floored 3 already.  
Another guy apparently wanted a really unforgiving kick in his gut, since my initial punch didn't bring him down.  
4.  
A bunch of them of them then surrounded me (were there even that many in here before? I didn't realise.) but one ring of fire later, and they were toast.  
How many was that now? 9 I think?

One dude thought he could try for a sneak attack, but I was too fast for him.  
"Stop making me lose count!" I shouted, kicking him again to keep him down.

What was I on now? 11?

"HOW MANY YOU ON, SALAMANDER? I'VE TAKEN OUT 14 ALREADY!" Gajeel yelled with glee, bashing his metal arm into anyone who dared come close enough.

Damn it, I was behind!  
"15, METAL FREAK!" I lied, engaging in combat with a few other guards.

My progress was slower than I wanted it to be, but I had the cannon shooting my dad in sight. Once I got close enough, all it would take was one fireball and it would all be over…

That was when we made eye contact. Igneel's serpent-like eye landed on me, and suddenly I was 5 years old again. I was just creating the smallest amounts of fire, barely sparks, and he was telling me how much I needed to improve, but I could recognise the pride in his eyes at the time. I could hear his voice telling me how strong I would be one day. He couldn't wait to see me grow up.

Now I was grown up, I wasn't going to disappoint him.

"I'M COMING, DAD!" I shouted, surprised at how it almost sounded like I was laughing as I blasted a few other guards with some red-hot fire.

What was I on now? 30ish? Who cares? The cannon was within my range!  
Focusing my energy into the one attack, a huge, white-hot fireball left my fist, travelling faster than anyone's eyes could follow.

I almost started cheering when the fireball hit its target. Almost.  
A few seconds later, I was still standing there, staring at a cannon which had taken no damage at all. What had just happened? Why didn't my fire do anything?  
I didn't have time to think about it. I was surrounded again, and this time there were more of them.

"WHY THE FUCK DIDN'T IT WORK?" I shouted as I ignited myself, throwing a punch in every direction.  
I almost lost concentration as I saw a dark figure solidify out of the ground right next to me, standing against my back and shooting pure darkness in all directions. Luckily, it spoke in a voice I recognised before I accidentally mistook it for something bad.

"I spoke to this guy a while back-" the black-haired kid (what was his name again? Rice? Riley?) panted; I was surprised he was still fighting when he sounded that tired, "he said he was forced to put anti-magic charms on stuff, or the guards would have killed his friends."

I cursed to myself. That explained why my magic didn't work on the cannons. But how were we going to destroy them without magic?  
My heart seized with panic as I listened in on the cries around the room that didn't belong to the guards. A hit was landed on me and shortly after that, I felt the force of the kid crashing into my back as he was hit. I could see the blonde kid near us, calling his friend's name, whilst I heard Gajeel from the other side of the cave yelling out for Wendy.

Our parents were trapped. We were falling. And if we fell, the entire rescue attempt would fail.  
I couldn't let that happen. Everything was riding on this… my dad's life, the freedom of my friends, Lucy's future…

Wiping blood from my mouth, I stood up tall, igniting my whole being. There had to be a way we could do this… and I would find it even if it killed me.

 **LUCY POV**

"Natsu really did a number on him" I whispered with a grin as Loke and I made our way back to where the fighting was still going on. I sort of remembered the way – and as far as I knew there was no other way to get to the dragon's room, so with a heavy heart I decided to leave that to Natsu and the other dragon slayers. Hopefully he would actually use his magic in there.

After we'd got separated, I realised that we weren't far from where we'd left Atwood. I was breathing heavily from the anxiety of going near that man again, but Loke insisted on scouting ahead and assured me he was still unconscious.  
One fingerprint later, and I got the thing off my face. It was nice to have my voice back.

"Yeah, yeah, but we all know there wouldn't have even been a body left if I had dealt with him, princess." Loke drawled with a smirk.  
"Wow. I can't believe I've actually missed you calling me princess." I chuckled.  
Loke paused for a moment before smiling to himself.  
"It's good to have you back, Lu-"

Before he could finish his heartfelt comment, a gunshot sound bounced deafeningly against the walls, echoing, followed by anguished cries filled with horror and grief. It came from the very direction I was headed towards.  
Oh god.  
Oh god, no.

Loke and I instantly broke into a quiet sprint, stopping just before we entered the cave in order to hide from view.

What I saw just didn't register at first.

It was like a frozen screenshot from a movie.  
The lighting was dim; the same explosions that collapsed the tunnel must have also caused parts of the cave ceiling to collapse, allowing eerie pockets of light to sift through. The lightning from Laxus had stopped, along with all the other fantastic explosions of magic I had witnessed earlier.  
The cries I heard several seconds before had died into silent screams, evident on the few faces in the room I recognised. Erza… with Fernandez's arm arched protectively around her shoulders, and the others I had once shared a cage with…

Everyone's eyes were on two men in the middle of the cave, in an unnerving spotlight right below a crack in the ceiling.  
The one I didn't recognise was standing tall and proud, the gun in his hand still smoking as he lowered it. His guard uniform held a badge which separated him from the others as high-ranking. The demented, yet nonchalant look on his face was downright repulsive as he cleared his throat to speak.

"They are not indispensable when they act this way." He said, his voice echoing and reaching everyone as the cave remained silent. "We can find more. We were given guns for a reason."

The other man was on the ground. He lay sickeningly still and crumpled-looking, unaware of what had just transpired. I didn't want to look at the pool of blood that marred his chest.

I wanted this to be a movie. I wanted someone to yell "Cut!", allowing him to move again and smile at me with his kind eyes. I wanted to believe that I could speak to him again, ask him to tell me another story about his fascinating adventures…  
But this was real life.

"Rob..." the lion spirit next to me whispered with a shuddering breath.

My entire body was stiff. My ribs wouldn't expand enough to let me breathe.  
They had the power to kill us from the start.  
They didn't… why? What did this _mean_?  
And now they had the power to terminate us all… They had already taken someone I treasured…  
Was this the end?

My silent question was answered when both Erza and Fernandez - no, his first name was Jellal – stood up slowly, their eyes tearing away from the man they had once called 'Gramps'.

I watched as one by one, the guards exchanged eye contact with one another, hesitantly pulling out their concealed guns. But once their fingers rested on the triggers, their hesitation was gone, replaced with the spine-chilling thrill of power.

They pointed their guns at the two teenage mages who had nothing but rage in their eyes.  
I internally shrieked at myself to move, but I didn't even have enough control over my body to blink.  
This was the end, wasn't it?

Erza had only just been reunited with everyone, only to lose Rob bight before her eyes, and now… I could see a trigger being pulled.

A second later, several things happened simultaneously, changing the entire atmosphere from eerily still to fast-forwarded.

A gunshot. The grating pang of the bullet hitting a newly-materialised shield. The wind changing as a blurry figure darted against gravity, too fast for the eye to follow as it continued whizzing through the air in different directions.

It all ended in a cry from the guard as the bullet from his own gun ricocheted straight into his leg.

"YOU WILL NOT TRIUMPH OVER US! WE WILL AVENGE HIS MEMORY!" Erza bellowed as she lowered her shield.  
The fury, the grief, the determination in her voice melted the vice on my body. My breath came back. I could move again.

The guard – the one who shot Rob – sneered condescendingly and raised his gun again. I grabbed my keys, seconds away from attacking.  
"That's where you're wrong, girl. You have no cha-"

"HEAVENLY BODY MAGIC: GRAND CHARIOT!" a yell from above interrupted him, followed by a deafening rumble as yet more of the ceiling collapsed.  
Shields materialised out of thin air left right and centre above everyone who wasn't in a guard uniform.

But before the ceiling even hit the ground, several violent beams of light that looked like they had come from the stars themselves struck the guards closest to Erza.  
She stood there, looking strong and sturdy as ever, as the ceiling finally reached the ground.

When the dust cleared, every single mage was on their feet, hands out ready to attack, a powerful feeling filling them all. It was like an uncontrollable fire had spread within everyone, with Erza and Jellal having formed a spark.  
It was a stark contrast to the guards Jellal had hit with his magic; they lay there helplessly with all their power and control gone in an instant.

And then, all hell broke loose… yet again. Spells were cast, guards were blown away, guns were shot but bullets did not meet their intended targets.  
It wasn't the end. Not yet.

And amongst all this chaos, Rob's body still lay there. I didn't want to just leave him there.  
After a silent glance at Loke's aged and hardened eyes, I gently grabbed his hand and led him towards his old friend. Along the way, I summoned Sagittarius and asked him to defend us against the bullets, to which he solemnly obliged after sensing the emotions rolling off his leader.

"Come on Loke, let's get him out of here. Away from the fight." I said, attempting to lift up the man's torso with my only working arm.

"Loke and I will move him, Lucy." A voice said behind me. I looked around to see Jellal, appearing almost fragile with tears in his eyes.  
"You're injured, Lucy. Stay close to Sagittarius while we take Rob…" The lion spirit trailed off.  
I nodded, knowing I had no right to argue, and watched as the two boys carried him away.

I then looked back to the fight, watching in awe as every last guard was struck down, their bullets colliding uselessly with shields and Sagittarius' arrows.  
I felt an overwhelming feeling of exhaustion catch up with me as things started to become still again.

I realised, looking around in a daze, that the previously overwhelming power of the guards had been crushed.

"Lucy, are you okay?" the horse spirit pulled me out of my daze as he came and sat with me.  
"Yes. I'm okay." I sighed, smiling up at the spirit. "You did a great job, Sagittarius. I think it's over. You may go."

After sending him away and feeling that Loke, too, had returned to the spirit world, I frowned, suddenly under the weight of all the things that currently were not okay.

Aquarius and Rob were gone.  
I took a deep breath. There was nothing I could do about that but… grieve. And I would have to wait until this numbness went away first in order to do that.  
What else wasn't okay?  
Natsu and the other dragon slayers hadn't come back yet. I guess there was something I could at least try to do about that.

Awkwardly picking myself up, I passed the resting and overjoyed mages who had just fought the fight of their life, making my way towards the tunnels leading to dragon's cave. There must be another passage that led to it.

"Where are you off to? It's over! We've done it!" Cana yelled, interrupting my train of thought and running towards me with what I assumed was a celebratory alcoholic drink in her hand.  
I returned her hug when she reached me, smiling. There was something to be glad about – there would be no more casualties. The majority of my friends were still alive. I was glad.

"Yeah, we really did." I replied, trying my best to give her a grin. "But I haven't seen the dragon slayers since we got separated looking for their parents – I'm sure they're fine but I need to find them."  
"Their parents? Didn't Natsu and Gajeel claim they had big scary dragon parents?" she asked, eyes widening in unsure disbelief.  
"Yeah, they weren't joking, Cana. I've seen them." I replied, watching with amusement as she finally thought of the prospect of things such as dragons existing in the world. "Come on, let's find-"

Before I could finish my sentence, I heard footsteps coming towards the cave. I turned around, desperately hoping it would be the dragon slayers, celebrating triumphantly about winning the battle and finding their parents at last.  
Instead, we were joined by Levy and Gildarts, looking entirely out of breath but otherwise thankfully unhurt. The urgency in their facial expressions gained my full attention as I ran up to greet them.

But, my heart stopped when I heard a single word uttered by Levy.  
"Reinforcements-"  
"What? There are more of them?" Cana choked, her face hardening.

After taking a look around at the exhausted and injured mages, Gildarts swallowed, nodded and spoke; "We spotted hundreds of them, only a few minutes away. They have us surrounded."

Defeated gasps were heard throughout the cave as people heard those words.  
We were so close… so close to being free…

Gildarts looked like he was going to continue, but his voice died in his throat.  
Silence filled the cave as everyone realised how this was going to end. There was no way they could keep defending themselves against countless enemies. There was no hope. The only option left was to surrender. To give up.

I shook my head. How many times had I felt this excruciatingly crushing feeling in the last few months? How many times had I felt it today alone?

I thought back to when I was a kid. I felt no hope when my mother died; I thought my own happiness was over. But… my spirits gave me back that hope.  
And when my adventure started back at the train station… hadn't I given up hope because of some measly train doors? It was Natsu who restored it that day.  
I gave up when that monster attacked us during our first detention session, but woke up to my friends by my side, having saved my life.  
I gave up when the phoenix was heading towards me, only for Virgo to pull me back to safety.  
I gave up when Atwood held a gun towards me, and it was Natsu who saved me all over again.

There were plenty of times I hadn't given up, too. And those had been the decisions I didn't regret.

"I've still got some magic left. I'm fighting." I said stubbornly, breaking the silence and receiving a few surprised glances.  
"Well, Duh." I heard Laxus say as he approached us. "Everyone who can't fight can just stay back. The rest of us should surround the entrances and take down who we can."

"But that's not sustainable, they'll break through eventually!" Levy argued.

"Yeah, they will." I said simply.

I watched as realisation, and then acceptance dawned on Levy's face.

"The people who are too injured or young to fight can use the time to find an underground passage that will hopefully get them past and away from the guards." I said. "We can help buy them time."  
 _And probably die trying,_ I added in my head.

"I guess we're fighting with you then."  
I turned around to see Gray leading the rest of our old detention group behind him, with Juvia latching onto his arm, just like always. They were obviously all sporting injuries of some kind, but they were all standing.  
There were some additions, too – Mirajane and Lisanna's brother along with his friends, the group of people that had been in my cage, and a few other individuals I had seen fighting earlier.

I smiled. What a way to go out, surrounded by my friends.

"Looks like the detention club is back together. God, I miss detention." Cana quipped, making us all laugh. The laughter felt out of place, and yet I welcomed the feeling of it whole-heartedly.  
"Minus the 3 dragon slayers, it seems." Levy said with a frown.  
"They…" I stopped myself from saying they were on their way here. I didn't know the truth, and I couldn't bear to think of the alternative…

Oh god, Natsu. Please be safe. Please be okay.

What brought me out of my internal pleading was the rising sound of marching we could hear above us.

"Positions, now! Everyone not staying to fight, start moving!" Laxus bellowed, and we followed him towards the entrances.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey, I'm still me. You know me. I leave you with cliff hangers and laugh at all the angry messages I get. Like the good ol' days.**

 **I forget what I used to write here. Please review, I guess! Let me know your thoughts, your constructive criticisms, your hopes and dreams, your favourite colour, anything, really! It'll be great to know people are still here.**

 **'Till next time,**  
 **-usnoozulose**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: The first thing I should say about this story is that I started writing it nearly two years ago, before some recent revelations in the manga. So just to avoid confusion – NATSU IT NOT RELATED TO ZEREF IN THIS STORY. I couldn't find a way to make that revelation fit in, so I decided not to force it.  
Also, I think this is my longest chapter.  
I think that's it, really. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

In a way, I was thankful that there wasn't really any time to think about what was to come. No dwelling, no fretting, just automatically going through the movements I would do before a fight. It was easier this way.  
I decided to summon Capricorn as I heard the ominous footsteps rhythmically plodding down the stairs. I started going through battle strategies in my head, already deciding what my first attack would be.

BANG

Just as I grasped his key, an explosion from above made everyone (even the seemingly invincible Gildarts) jump. I almost dropped my keys as I looked around for damages near us…  
But there were none. An odd thought popped into my head; did the reinforcements just bomb themselves?

After the shockwave-like sounds died down, I realised that the steady beat of guard footsteps had transformed into a sporadic mess of panic.  
I exchanged glances with the others around me. What… was that?

Seconds later we heard a mob of panic approaching us and, brushing off the shock from the sounds we were now hearing, steeled ourselves to fight anyway.  
That was, until a few of the guards came rushing in, ignoring us completely with terrified expressions which suggested that they had most likely wet themselves with fear.

In that moment, I wasn't sure whether to pinch myself or laugh.

"Do we… do we attack them?" I heard Cana ask.  
I shrugged. They really didn't seem like much of a threat when they were like this.  
The thing that had created that explosion though…

"MONSTERS!" one of the guards cried, grabbing onto his buddy in hysterics.

I looked back towards the entrances, shrinking away.  
The monsters? As in ravens and phoenixes and whatever else they'd created to attack us?

Out of the corner of my eye, I was gobsmacked to see Levy determinedly head towards the entrance without saying a word. I put out my hand to stop her, only for her to struggle out of my grasp and soldier on.

"Levy, what are you thinking!?" I called out, barely audible over the rising volume of chaos outside.  
"She got rid of them all earlier." Mirajane answered for Levy, who had now disappeared through the entrance alone. "All the monsters they made for us, I mean. Whatever's out there messing with the guards-"

"Might not be an enemy…" I finished for her.  
I chuckled to myself in awe. Trust Levy, nicknamed after a tiny insignificant crustacean, to be the one behind getting rid of those things that must have killed so many of us.

Still… what if she was wrong? What if she hadn't gotten all of them? It was definitely a possibility-

"Guys!" everyone perked up upon hearing her surprisingly elated voice, her blue curls whipping around uncontrollably as she ran back to us. "You need to see this, come on!"

There was but a moment of hesitation before every single exhausted mage present ran in the direction she had come back from.

I couldn't believe this. Did this mean that we had reinforcements too? Were there more mages from other places that had come to help us? After all, who else could cause this much pandemonium other than a bunch of powerful mages?  
Closing my eyes just before reaching the sunlight straining to reach the inside of the cave, I gathered myself to witness the saviours who had come to rescue us.

In those few seconds before I opened my eyes again, I fantasised about being saved, being offered a safe place to stay, asking them to help me find the missing dragon slayers before being whisked off, never having to feel afraid again.  
It seemed too good to be true, but god, did it feel _good_ to imagine a future like that after what we had all been through.

As soon as I felt the warm sunlight hitting my legs, I opened my eyes, blinking as my irises constricted more than they had in a long time. It took some time for my eyes to adjust and stop protesting against the sudden onslaught of brightness.

The first thing I noticed was that the sun was not the only source of light. Amongst the grass and fallen guards, an uncontrollable source of light was spreading, spreading, spreading.  
Next thing I knew, a blast of this uncontrollable light smothered my senses.

Fire.  
I could feel the heat.  
 **Fire.**

The rational part of my brain told me that it wasn't really that close to me. I could walk around it. It wouldn't spread that fast.

But then I felt the burns on my legs and arms as if they were brand new. I could hear an eerie echoing of the snickering of guards behind that wall as the phoenix leapt towards me, leaving only destruction in its path.

The rational part of my brain told me there was no phoenix or snickering guards here.

And yet, I was there. Back in the room with the phoenix. The same fear I felt that day was pumping through me as if it were fresh. I couldn't hear or see anything other than the phoenix, surrounded by fire. _I was going to die here._

* * *

I wasn't really sure what happened next. I guess I had somehow gotten control of my legs again and ran as far away from the inferno as I could.

And that's how I ended up on the floor in a random underground tunnel, sobbing into my hand as I waited for my brain and body to get out of panic mode. I didn't know what just happened, only that I couldn't help it.  
As I started to feel rational thought come back to me again, I attempted to control my breathing. My hand reached for my keys – and feeling an overwhelming relief as the cold metal touched my hand was just what I needed to help clear my head. Hiding the keys safely down my top, I grabbed my head and tried to think straight.

One thing I knew for sure – I was going crazy. I hadn't stepped foot in that room since Virgo had dragged me out. There was no phoenix. That was something I had created out of thin air.  
I had no new burns and, as I took in the ambiance of the cool, silent tunnel, I realised that I was safe. For now.

I had had a panic attack, I think. A really, really intense one.

My eyes popped open when I thought about how everyone had gone outside, where the fire was. Were they safe? I mean, if the phoenix wasn't real, I'm sure they were okay…

My thoughts were interrupted by a familiar clicking sound. Metal against metal. Though subtle, it echoed off the walls of the tunnel…  
and filled me with dread.

I looked towards the source of the sound, and after taking in the sight, I closed my eyes, swallowed, and opened my eyes again only to stare at the wall opposite me.

Why was I not surprised? _Had I really been through so much today that the sight of Atwood, back on his feet and reloading his fucking gun, barely earned a reaction from me?_  
Of course this was going to happen. Of-fucking-course. I was _so_ going to haunt the person who decided to give me the nickname 'lucky' Lucy.

I was just so _tired._

"Get up. No funny business." Atwood ordered. His charisma had not returned since I tried to use urano metria on him. Not that I was surprised.

Making sure not to allow my keys to make a telltale jingling sound as I moved, I followed his orders. What else could I do? His gun was a lot faster than my summoning ability.

I lazily took in the sight of him as I faced him, standing a few metres away. Even from a distance, he stank of burning. I eyed the singed hair, clothes and… skin. Natsu really was thorough. I was surprised Atwood was standing.

"Getting burned hurts, doesn't it?" I heard myself saying calmly, as if I were discussing the weather.

A few seconds of silence passed as his face tightened.  
And, for some reason, even though I knew I was probably seconds from death, I just couldn't stand the tension of waiting for him to make a move.

"Why haven't you shot me yet?" I asked. Again, my voice was calmer than I knew it should be.

"That would be a waste. You are still of use to me." he replied, evidently attempting to mimic my calm tone. I was surprised to hear an undertone of panic, though. He wasn't the one staring down the barrel of a gun.

"So what's going to stop me from just turning around and leaving?" I challenged him.

"You're defenceless and injured." He countered. Good. Let him think I didn't have my keys with me. "And I didn't say I needed you in good health. Though I'd rather refrain from having to drag you, I will not hesitate if you provoke me."

I nodded. I guess I already knew that was the case.  
He beckoned me to start walking down the tunnel and I obliged, listening to his heavy footsteps as he followed me. I walked as slowly as I could, feigning a limp so that he wouldn't think I was trying to stall him in any way.

I needed time to think. Was there any way at all I could get out of this? Probably not. And what did he mean when he said I was of use? What use was _I_ to _him_? He already knew I wouldn't kill for him. There were no more monsters for them to power using my magic.

I thought back to what the guard had said after he killed Rob. Something about getting more mages to replace us if we were killed. Why on earth would they need more mages who were supposedly dangerous?

I opened my mouth to ask him that, but decided against it. There was no point in wasting my breath. Even if I managed to dig up something big, what was the point if the information would die with me?

But then, my eye caught on something, barely visible on the wall I walked past. To the unknowing individual, one would think it was just a peculiar rock protrusion from the wall and nothing else. Their eyes would drift right past it.  
I however, instantly thought back to when I had been reunited with Cana.

 _"You done with the camera stuff yet, Cana?" Natsu asked abruptly.  
I gave him a questioning look, but his attention was drawn to Cana who replied with a short "Not yet." _

Cameras. They had put up disguised cameras to film this place. To show to other people the horror that mages were put through. To show that we are not the dangerous ones.  
My eyes widened. I had no doubt that this was their plan.  
And even if we failed, even if we died, the footage would live on so that this treatment of mages could end once and for all.

And if I could get Atwood to unknowingly make a statement on camera… that could be the defining factor in making people realise that they obviously had a hidden agenda.  
I had no time to lose. I thought fast.

"If you think you're going to be able to convince me to kill for you, you might as well shoot me right now. You know I won't do it." I said.

I heard him chuckle sickeningly.  
"You know, I wouldn't have actually allowed those boys to drown fully. I just wanted to see if you would do it." he replied.

A pang in my chest at the fact that I could have saved Aquarius ripped through me. Was it true? If I had called his bluff and done it, would her key still be whole…?

 _No, Lucy. Come on. He's just trying to get to you. Plus, you would have never been able to gamble with their lives.  
_ After trying to calm myself down, I visibly shrugged. I wouldn't let him know how much that comment had stung.

"Why not let them die? You guys evidently don't really care about our wellbeing. Aren't they destructive dangers to society?" I asked. _  
_"They would grow to harbour quite a lot of magic inside them. We could tell they were different from the others due to their link with the dragons. Why waste that potential?"

I tried to quench both my nausea and eagerness. Getting him to talk was easier than I thought it would be.

"Potential? According to your propaganda, that potential is dangerous. I don't understand." I argued.

He chuckled again.  
"You have a brain. Do you have any theories?" he asked mockingly.

"You use our magic to power the monsters you created. That much I know." I said after a few seconds. "But as you've probably heard from the battlefield, that plan backfired. Which leads me to the question of what use am I to you right now? If the idea that mages are dangerous is true, then why would you need to _replace_ the mages you were planning to kill today? Why would you hesitate to kill us in the first place?"

"You're not the first to have asked this, you know." He said after I had finished. He then paused, I assume it was to think. "But I guess I should grant you the answer, seeing as you will be the first subject to help us to our goal after centuries of experimentation."

I swallowed, feeling a whole new wave of dread almost drown me.

"Experimentation?" I repeated.

"Centuries ago, there used to be next to no information on the phenomena that was magic. That was, until our finest scientists teamed together with an extremely powerful mage to seek answers." He said. "They found out everything they wanted to know – about the genetics, control and variation of magic. And then they went further, discovering some uses of magic that may change life as we know it."

"I never read about any of this anywhere. I was told the discovery of magic 400 years ago prompted a huge public scare, leaving mages everywhere to go into hiding." I interrupted him in confusion. "The mage who started it all was Zeref – he's the one who made everyone fear us."

"Ah, Zeref." He said as if he were casually reminiscing about an old friend. "Zeref was the powerful mage working to seek answers about magic. He became… angry when he learned of what was being done to study the _uses_ of magic. He did not understand that it was for the greater good."

"What made him so angry?" I asked, a part of me not really wanting to know the answer.

"Experimentation. Human experimentation on mages… in order to find alternative, cleaner sources of energy."

My jaw dropped. I stopped dead in my tracks, barely registering the gun being pushed painfully between my shoulder blades. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. _How many people knew the truth?_

"… _Clean_? You think a breach of basic human rights is… _clean_? Are you sure it wasn't just for the business? The money?"

"As I said, Lucy, it was for the greater good. Zeref did not understand that – and my predecessors had to silence him before ruining their magnificent plans for the future."

"And all this stuff about mages being dangerous was a cover-up, wasn't it? You're going to harvest our magic to power your bloody smartphones, without any consideration of how many of us you've killed!" I was almost shouting now, my rage getting the better of me. "Because if people knew the truth, you would have been stopped in a heartbeat. Did Zeref even do what they said he did in the textbooks? Did he really blow up an entire town?"

"He did, in a way. After all, how were my predecessors to know that using their unperfected technology on someone with as much magic as him would create that much energy?" he said, and I was disgusted to hear a complete lack of remorse.

"…So Zeref became one of their subjects – no, one of their victims. And _they_ caused _him_ to blow up the town, killing hundreds of people." I clarified, reminding myself that the cameras were still rolling.

"Along with the research facility, delaying the progress of our organisation by decades. It was truly a tragedy."

I grit my teeth, stopping myself from starting a rant at how absurd it was that he called _that_ a tragedy above everything else.

"But I digress. You are probably wondering where you come into all of this." He drawled, pushing me forwards again. "This place has been overrun and is no longer safe for me. You're going to help me to get out of here so that my organisation may continue. You get the honour of being the first subject we use to produce functional electricity – which will be used for my essential escape. And while it may cost your life Lucy, it will be for the greater good."

"No…" I whispered.

I tried to scan my brain for anything, _anything_ I could do to get myself out of this situation. But nothing turned up. Nothing.  
I'd done what I wanted to do, though. I got him on camera revealing the secrets that only a handful of despicable people must have known. I'd just secured the future of all of my friends that had survived the battle today… and I felt proud about it.

But… I wanted to join them… I didn't want it to end for me here. Not like this.

And that was when I heard it. A barely audible disturbance coming from behind us, echoing through the silence.

* * *

 **NATSU POV**

The one time… _the one damn time_ I really needed to pull off a stealth attack… and I'd failed her. Again.

He had her in a chokehold, gun to her head before he even turned around. Before I could do anything to stop him.  
I watched, frozen, as she finally laid her wide eyes on me. So many emotions fluttered through them in that instant, the last one bringing a tear to her eye as she glanced down at the white scarf wrapped firmly around my neck.

Yeah, Luce. I'd freed my dad, thanks to you. I'd made him proud; unleashing this power I never knew I had in order to knock out each and every guard. It happened to the other dragon slayers, too. Gajeel bullied the last measly guard standing into telling us how to shut off the cannons and it was a piece of cake from that point on.  
It seemed so… _unreal_ when I thought back to the epic flight I'd had after we crashed through the roof of the massive cave the dragons had been kept in. We'd spotted a whole new army of guards and I remember grinning so hard at the thought of kicking all their asses… _with my dad right there next to me._

That was what I'd been craving all these years. Some quality father-son ass-kicking bonding time.

And then, just as the guards' numbers were dropping into double digits, and my adrenaline was starting to wear off, my dad landed and said he'd forgotten something important.  
He then gave me my scarf back. Said that Luce had delivered it to him. Asked if I knew where she was.

And my chest started to ache because it still smelt of her, and, looking around, I couldn't see her anywhere.

Glancing around at the wicked patches of fire me and my dad had left behind, I knew she probably wouldn't be around here.  
So that meant she was safe underground. I could just go there, follow her scent, and it would lead me straight to her. I could tell her everything was going to be okay. And then we'd hug and she'd kiss me on the cheek and…

And instead, I'd found her like _this._ I'd heard the last few words that he'd said to her.

"Natsu." She uttered silently, heartbroken. I noted that she'd finally found a way to get that metal thing off her face. That was the first time I'd heard her voice in ages.  
I couldn't stand it anymore. He was watching my every movement with extreme caution. One tiny spark from me and I knew he'd hurt her. I could see it in his eyes.  
I could only see one way to protect her, and she wasn't going to like it.

"Take me." I said, clearing my throat when I realised how blocked it had become. "If you leave her alone I'll be your subject, or whatever."

I have to admit, under different circumstances, I would have cried with laughter at the way her face scrunched up into a mask of intense fury. Maybe even provoked her even more over stupid things so that she'd chase me shouting over-the-top insults at me. That was always fun.  
Atwood's smirk brought me back to reality, though.

"A generous offer-" was all he managed to say before the bombshell in his arms exploded.

"WHAT? WHAT THE HELL, NATSU, JUST GO-"

I saw red as she was cut off, gasping in pain as Atwood grabbed her broken arm and yanked harshly. I felt bile rise to my throat as my fists shook.  
 _How dare he._

"STOP IT! I said you could take me instead! What part of leave her alone don't you understand?" I growled, barely suppressing the fire within me aching to come out.

And the slimebag chose that moment to start laughing.

"My boy, what made you think you were in a position to make demands?" he drawled, pressing his gun against Lucy's head. She didn't flinch, though. Her jaw was clenched, and her eyes were darting around as if she was looking for something that she knew to be invisible.  
"I will accept your offer, though." He continued. "I see a lot more potential in you than I do in this unpromising girl. And I can assure you that as long as you do what I say, I will not shoot her. Deal?"

He was underestimating her big time, and I knew it.  
But I guess there was nothing for it. I was out of ideas for now. All I could do was agree to what he says until I was given an opening.  
All I knew is that I wasn't giving up just yet.  
And I knew from the intense look in Lucy's eyes that she hadn't fully given up either.

* * *

 **LUCY POV**

Damn that bloody self-sacrificing idiot! He could have just run away unharmed, but nooooooo, he had to make sure we _both_ got killed instead of just one of us! Atwood was planning to kill him and then me; that much was obvious.

"Deal." I heard Natsu reply to Atwood's crooked proposal. Atwood then motioned for Natsu to walk forwards, passing by us so that Atwood could follow from behind. I had to prevent myself from reaching out to hold Natsu's steaming hand…  
I wanted to be angry at the pink-haired moron, I really did. But I knew that if our roles had been switched, I wouldn't have run away either. I would have stayed with him until the end if I had to.

Funnily enough, the things they say in those cringey children's shows are true. The fact that Natsu was here, about to have his magic and life-force sucked out of him by this horrific excuse for a human being, made giving up not an option. With him here, I felt _stronger._ And I'm sure he felt the same way. I just needed to figure out _something-_

"Open the door on the left – this is where our latest technology is." Atwood ordered coldly.

My eyes widened in panic. We barely had minutes left before it would all be over… what if we didn't think of something in time?

We followed Natsu into a room full of work benches, tools and half-built objects that looked eerily similar to the cannons they'd used to harvest my magic. As we walked further into the room, I knew without Atwood having to motion towards it that we were heading for the large object in the corner. It was polished, pristine, and… deadly-looking.  
It was like a larger version of the cannon I'd seen. Connected to its back was a thick wire, leading to a large battery. Its meter was set at empty. I glanced around. At the other side of the room was a doorway, signed as an emergency exit. I assumed that there was probably some sort of escape vehicle through that doorway… and the only way to power it was with the battery connected to the cannon.  
This is what they'd been working on for years… the weapon they'd been planning to use on all of us…

I froze when images of Natsu at the receiving end of that _thing_ flashed through my head.

"Stand there and strap yourself in." Atwood ordered, pointing towards the wall adjacent to the cannon.

Oh god, I couldn't breathe. This was going too fast. There wasn't an opening to get ourselves out of this, not with a gun pushed to my head. Once the cannon was on, there would be _nothing_ I could do.

I looked desperately at Natsu. His back was to me. He hadn't moved, and I felt Atwood's grip get tighter.

"I said-"  
"Can I say goodbye first?" Natsu interrupted him.

I started to shake my head. Goodbye? Don't tell me… was he giving up? No… no, he wouldn't…

"I will permit it, seeing as you are playing a pivotal role in this organisation. But you know what will happen if you try anything." Atwood agreed after a few silent moments.

"Natsu, don't, please-"  
"It's okay, Luce. It's going to be okay. Look after my scarf, would you?" he was now walking towards me, his face unreadable.

 _Liar_. It wasn't going to be okay. But I found myself nodding. I still couldn't believe he was giving up like this… and so _calmly_ …

When he stood right in front of me, he caught me in an intense gaze. He then placed his hands on his scarf, not breaking eye contact with me as he took it off.

There was something peculiar about his movements. Usually he handled his scarf with as much care as possible, taking one end and unwrapping it so that the fibres wouldn't stretch.  
I glanced down at his hands, watching as he loosened the scarf slightly, then yanked on one end in a fast movement to pull it off rather violently.

And I understood instantly.

He'd managed to communicate it to me without words. _A way out of this._  
He put the scarf around my neck and I nodded slightly, letting him know that I'd gotten his message loud and clear.  
He then walked away and did as Atwood had instructed him to.

It was all up to me now. I just had to time it correctly. I would only get one shot at this, and one wrong move could kill me instantly.

And though I now had hope that both of us could actually survive this, it didn't stop the genuine sob that left my throat when Atwood turned on the cannon.

Natsu's screams filled the room. It felt like a direct stab right in my stomach, twisting painfully.

I watched him, my whole body trembling as I stood there, waiting, unable to do anything whilst the boy I loved was slowly being killed.  
 _Just hold on for a little longer, Natsu. I promise I'll stop this soon.  
_ I started sobbing openly, my body going limp in complete and utter hopelessness. But that was part of the plan.

Atwood eased his grip ever so slightly as he saw his life's work, his dream, finally coming to fruition.

It was now or never.

With a sudden movement, I mimicked the odd movements Natsu had made as he took off his scarf. This was what he'd no doubt been wordlessly telling me to do earlier. I'd never attempted to get out of a chokehold before, but I'd witnessed him do it countless times in his stupid brawls.

I'd caught Atwood off-guard. _Of course a helpless, 'unpromising' girl would never try anything as stupid as this…_  
After securing my only working hand around his arm and yanking hard enough to pull him up against my back (yeah, I grimaced at our brief proximity, too), I stepped back, bent my knees and took advantage of my lower centre of gravity. With one more yank, I straightened my knees and bent forwards, flipping the dazed man onto the floor in front of me.  
A deafening gunshot made me jump, but I heard it hit something metal at the other side of the room. It must have been a late reaction from Atwood, who still held the gun tightly in his hand.

There was no time to marvel over my own technique.

I saw him nearly instantly come out of his daze as he moved his gun towards me, but I gripped it before he could aim. I also shoved my foot into his face in my efforts to make him let go, but it only made him struggle harder as he brought up his other hand to pull the gun away from me. I couldn't hear what he was shouting over Natsu's screams.

Another gunshot.  
And there were two screaming people in the room.

A gush of blood started dripping onto Atwood as he cradled his bloody hand to his chest. _He'd just accidentally shot his own hand, and it could have easily been me…_

Without thinking twice, I took this opportunity to finally yank the gun out of his hand, throwing it a few metres away. Then, quickly stepping over him, I desperately reached towards the switch on the cannon.

But after one aggressive tug at my leg, I was on the floor, being dragged back towards the man who would now not hesitate to kill me.

I wasn't going to give him a chance. Not now that I was so, _so_ close to stopping whatever that cannon was doing to Natsu. I didn't know how long he had left before the damage would be irreversible…

With a ragged cry, I kicked my legs, managing to get a few strikes in before he overpowered me. He was nearly twice as big as me, and a lot stronger. After pinning my struggling body down, his profusely bleeding hand still cradled to his chest, his eyes searched the room for his gun.

They lit up with insane malice when he spotted it.

And I knew in that moment that I wasn't going to be able to overpower him and survive this… without magic. I knew of only one way which wouldn't endanger my keys.  
The only problem was that I would be in the damage zone along with Atwood, but that hardly bothered me. I could also get the cannon in the damage zone. Win-win.

He quickly got up to run towards the gun but I managed to trip him up with my newly freed limbs. He then punched me and pinned me down again, shouting threats at me just as I knew he would.  
Meanwhile, I closed my eyes, breathed in and started the chant.

 **"Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens,  
All the stars, far and wide..."**

"Don't you dare start that again!" he yelled, trying to cover my mouth and thus freeing my hand, allowing me to get a firm grip on his hair. I wasn't going to let him move.

 **"Show me thy appearance,  
With such shine."**

Another punch to my face. It only served to increase the aggressiveness in my words and the power I put into the spell. My uncontrollable rage kept my concentration steady.

 **"Oh Tetrabiblos,  
I am the ruler of the stars..."**

I could feel the energy building within me, almost painfully. He was still struggling, but inside I was laughing at his futile attempt. He stopped me last time. I would _not_ allow it to happen again.

 **"Aspect become complete,  
Open thy malevolent gate."**

I opened my eyes to see an explosion of colour everywhere, blinding me but at the same time filling me with wonder. This powerful feeling… it was _exquisite.  
_ An image of Natsu popped into my mind, with that big goofy grin on his face as he gestured me to follow him. My friends surrounded him, as Happy flew over everyone's heads cheerfully.  
It was all I needed to put everything I had into my last few words.

 **"Oh 88 Stars of the heaven...  
Shine!  
Urano Metria!"**

Suddenly, a colossal, fantastic force started pelting everything within several metres. I'd made sure Natsu wouldn't be in the line of fire, but I couldn't say the same for me.

Atwood, who was still pinning me down, took the worst of it. However, as he collapsed on top of me, I could feel the pure starlight of the spell burning me. Not in the same way fire does – it felt like more of an internal burning, threatening to rip me up from the inside.  
Atwood must have felt this, but 100 times worse.  
And that was what made me bring the spell to completion despite my own pain; I had to make sure he stayed down this time. In that moment, I wasn't even sure if I would have minded… killing him.

The spell stopped when I felt like there was nothing left within me.

The room settled into silence.  
Silence? So… that meant that the cannon had been destroyed, right?

Though my body felt like it was made of lead, I had to see if Natsu was okay before I passed out. Pushing the heavy load that was Atwood off of my body, I looked towards him.

I almost screamed when I saw that the cannon was still very much undamaged (did magic not damage those things?), and still firing at Natsu. Natsu… who wasn't making noise anymore.

 _Oh, god… Was Natsu even… alive? Please… please say I wasn't too late…_

As fast as I possibly could, I crawled towards the cannon. My progress was achingly slow, knowing that Natsu could die at any moment if he wasn't dead already.

 _He's not dead. He can't be._

I finally reached the cannon and, using it for support, I stretched my arm up as far as it would go towards the switch.  
One last effort, and I felt the device stop humming as I collapsed against it.

That was it. That was the last small burst of energy I had left. All I could do now was lie down, facing Natsu's unmoving figure, no longer being struck by the eerie light from the cannon. I couldn't even check to see if he was still breathing…

My eyes eventually closed and I couldn't open them again.

"Natsu…" I whispered into the darkness. "Natsu, please… wake up. I can't lose you… please… I love you… so much…"

Every syllable was an effort, and I wasn't even sure if I was saying them aloud anymore. The temptation of unconsciousness was looming closer and closer, taking me in against my will.

And just as I drifted into complete darkness, I heard one word being said.

"Lucy."

But I couldn't tell whether or not it was real.

 **A/N: Funny how these things start out as happy little stories and then become angsty af towards the end *Looks pointedly at Hiro Mashima***

 **So, yeah. This story is officially coming to a close. A sort of epilogue-like chapter is next, and a proper "10 years later" epilogue may come after that.  
It's been a ride, my dudes. And I've enjoyed every second of it thanks to you lot putting up with my extremely amateur writing style. **

**A note about this chapter is that it's most likely not an accurate representation of some things. Like I've had pretty bad panic attacks before, so I tried to draw from that experience, but I've never actually experienced PTSD.  
I have learnt the self-defence technique of getting out of a chokehold, and it ****_is_** **easier and more effective if your opponent is taller than you, but then again I'm not a professional.  
Blah blah blah, I'm still a naïve teenager, don't take anything I write seriously.**

 **Thank you to everyone who followed and favourited the story, especially those who reviewed! Here are some replies to the extended reviews:**

 **Whatstoknow – yeah, sorry, I'm really bad at this website. I only put the note in my bio and nobody really bothers to check that, I should have known. Thanks for bothering to review even though it was so late!**

 **wildkat0122 – Dude I would marry Leo in a heartbeat, don't understand why he was the last one to get a relationship.**

 **CupcakeTiara – thank you thank you thank you! And yeah, I remember before starting this story that I wanted to read something like it as well. I eventually got sick of waiting and just wrote the damn thing. Would recommend.**

 **I guess that's it 'till next time. Remember to review to tell me how much you'll hate me if it turns out Natsu actually died!  
Who knows, maybe he actually did.  
Or not.**

 **-usnoozulose**


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